Databoutique.com’s Post

“You’ve got to remove yourself from the addiction to short-term solutions to sales and build long-term momentum.” - Jack Shewmaker, Walmart's first VP of Security Revenue leaders often use fleeting plans like discounts, promotions, and trends to increase sales. While these tricks can create spikes in revenue, they need to do more to build long-term customer loyalty or lasting growth. Known for “Everyday Low Prices,” Walmart's constant focus on affordability helps it stand out in a crowded market. Today, their legacy apparel brand is back on shelves, fighting market trends with a vengeance. While other stores compete with fancy designs, No Boundaries at Walmart drives affordability–and their strategic narrative. 

Happy to share the second part of my Apparel series, focusing on common pitfalls and emerging challenges faced by retailers today. The article starts by differentiating pure retailers from the more mixed 'apparel manufacturers', explaining how they differ in essential competitive skills. Then, it explains three challenges facing retailers today - extra margin pressure from offering third-party brands. - problems caused by excessive promotions. - competition in the low-end segment from the ultra-fast fashion of Shein and Temu. Finally, the article exemplifies the challenges faced by 11 retailers, mainly from the US: Destination XL (DXLG), Children’s Place (PLCE), Stitch Fix (SFIX), Citi Trends (CTRN), Cato (CATO), Tillys (TLYS), Zumiez (ZUMZ), Hibbett (HIBB), Caleres (CAL), Shoe Carnival (SCVL), and Genesco (GCO). The next part will delve deeper into apparel manufacturers.

Denim is iconic… You can’t go wrong with it – trendy denim comes and goes, denim has up and down cycles, but at the heart of it – Denim is Americana! Levi Strauss & Co. is coming off of a successful Q2 – net income hit $18M, compared to Q2 LY at a loss of $2M. Inventory is down, margin is up, and both DTC and wholesale saw healthy growth. Recipe for further success! Its 501 style is a front runner - +16% in DTC. My sad Millennial heart still holds on tight to my skinny jeans but seems like the rest of the world has moved on – “loose fits” are up +21%! Levi’s says they are seeing growth in non-denim apparel. 70 new stores will open in the back half of the year bringing the total store count to 2,600 globally. #purchasingpower Levi's has built trust with the consumer in their bottoms' business. I would love to see the non-denim assortment expand to help drive UPTs and the potential for customers to come back more frequently. They can continue to use their core denim as the anchor while making storefronts and their homepage look fresh with a new assortment of tops; a different POV – compelling visual experiences. DTC should be part of the growth focus, but not at the expense of wholesale. Do you believe Levi’s will heed the lessons learned from other retailers swinging the pendulum too far? P.S. Pictured below is a pair of “vintage” 501s from the 90s that are listed on ebay. Are the 90s really considered vintage? I need to hear your thoughts! #denim #lifestyle #brand #apparel #retail #sales #dtc #wholesale #balance #inventory

WEEKEND BRIEFING: MASS FASHION STALWARTS LIKE NIKE AND H&M FACE STIFF COMPETITION Danny Parisi for Glossy Key Takeaways: ℹ Last week, major mass fashion brands like Nike and H&M stumbled amid stiff competition from newer rivals. Don’t forget to subscribe to the Glossy Podcast for interviews with fashion industry leaders and Week in Review episodes, and the Glossy Beauty Podcast for interviews from the beauty industry. –Danny Parisi, sr. fashion reporter 🐯 Two mass fashion giants, H&M and Nike, reported lowered earnings last week thanks to increased competition from newer upstarts. Both companies are titans in their field, Nike in sportswear and H&M in affordable fast fashion. But both are also now challenged by newer entrants into their respective markets. 💻 For H&M, the obvious challenger is Shein, whose low prices and fast direct shipping have undercut retailers and apparel brands selling in that lower price bracket. In earnings reported on Thursday, H&M said that its revenue is likely to fall 6% this year compared to last year. After the news came out, shares fell by 14%, the biggest single-day decline the company has seen in decades. 👚 H&M attributed the revenue drop to a few factors, including poor weather across Europe and its reduction in discounts. The latter, it said, it will reverse for the second half of the year, with slightly higher discounts incoming. Competition in the low-price market from Shein has pushed H&M into a more upmarket space, putting it more directly up against its rival Inditex and its subsidiary Zara. 👟 Nike and H&M won’t be the last major mass fashion brands to be challenged by new upstarts. It will be interesting to see whether they make changes to their business models to compete with their rivals. For its part, Amazon is reportedly launching a low-price Shein competitor. LEARN MORE: https://lnkd.in/dHVJ4GBn #nike #HM #investment #fashion #web3

Walmart continues to revamp and improve upon their #privatelabel offering. 1 in 5 units sold in the U.S. in 2023 was a store brand. Walmart announces the relaunch of “No Boundaries” - what was once a #tween #brand of my childhood has grown to a $2 Billion with a B business. The relaunch includes 130 new #size #inclusive styles across #womens, #mens, #footwear, and #accessories to appeal to #GenZ. Size inclusive is relative. I am anxiously waiting to see what the size range goes up to! 80% of the new #assortment is priced under $15! How do they do it? With 145 million people in the U.S. shopping in-store and online every week they have the #volume to #scale! Offering a compelling, #value-driven (value is always relative) #fashion assortment is important as Walmart enters this new phase of #growth. They have captured upper #middleclass customers with the introduction of bettergoods and trading down in other categories. Now is the #opportunity to take some of that share within fashion – not just #basics – layering pieces and socks. What will they do next?

When there is enough money in the hands of a company, it’s more than a simple success story, it’s a step into power. We are part of a trillion dolllar industry. Those of us in the industry have seen what that can look like. Greed is an ugly thing. It also pains me when people say, yes I’m not surprised they didn’t make it. It’s not an easy industry to achieve success. This article is hair raising; a winner take all maneuver cloaked in “it’s just business” and grumblingly some feel but don’t say, well maybe this will have a trickle down effect on everyone seeking to revive the retail model for better industry economics. But, we also have worked inside this type of leadership mindset. It’s a new age and a new generation where people dictate much of this demand. If there is no demand for fast fashion - that business will never work. So the big ask is what can we do differently to teach more people and emotionally connect (fellow brand experts) to finally push the shift toward more conscious consumerism, while still kee up profitability? “Great product, great price, value aligned mission and seamless experience.” Eric Benarouche I agree that legally the industry is not doing its part to draft but also regulate laws to protect us and this planet from overconsumption. It’s capitalism run amuck. The magic lies though in the people if we could just wake up to the future that’s here. Peer to peer shopping, creator commerce. Annelies Jansen At ari we saw how much industry uncomfortability it created to build let alone talk about its democratization. I feel you Geren Lockhart and we need a collective pact, and powerful global campaign led by industry leaders and out own funds and ventures to fight the good fight. We also need to give the successful midsized businesses the resources and structure to grow at a competitive market rate. This market is crazy right now we all know. But this is a great time for an industry pivot. I can see it.

Women's, men's and kidswear brand HYPE. is expanding its retail footprint by increasing its presence Europe and India. CEO Mike Thompson talks to Drapers about the brand’s international growth strategy. Read the full story below. #fashion #retail #retailnews #Hype #expansion

The retail landscape for kids' fashion is thriving, driven by evolving trends and online platforms alongside traditional stores. The demand for wholesale kids' clothing is surging, attributed to rising incomes and fashion-conscious parents. Retailers should focus on sourcing strategies, staying adaptable, and keeping up with changing preferences to succeed in this dynamic market. #clothing #fashion #retail #fashionindustry

Women's, men's and kidswear brand Hype is expanding its retail footprint by increasing its presence in Europe and India. CEO Mike Thompson talks to Drapers about the brand’s international growth strategy. Read the full story below. #fashion #retail #retailnews #Hype #expansion

Shein and Forever 21 have reached a deal that would allow the fashion rivals to sell each other's products both in store and online. Check out this Retail Dive article to learn more. #retail #datascan