Designer and marketer of fashion footwear and accessories for women, men and children Steve Madden has announced sales results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year ended December 31, 2013. For the fourth quarter, net sales were $342.6 million, an 8.6 percent increase as compared to 2012. Net sales for the wholesale division grew 10.5percent to $273.1 million. Retail net sales rose 1.7 percent to $69.5 million. Retail comparable store sales for the fourth quarter of 2013 decreased by 6.7 percent.
For fiscal year 2013, net sales stood at $1.314 billion, a 7.1 percent increase compared to last year. Wholesale net sales grew 6.6 percent to $1.104 billion while retail net sales rose 9.6 percent to $209.6 million. Retail comparable store sales for the 2013 fiscal decreased 2.1 percent. The company expects net sales to increase by 5 – 7 percent as against 2013 in 2014.
Commenting on the results, Edward Rosenfeld, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, said: “Our wholesale business met expectations during the fourth quarter, but our retail segment was below plan primarily due to softer-than-anticipated performance in December. We believe our product assortment remained on-trend, as evidenced by our continued strong performance in the wholesale segment, but traffic in our own retail stores was disappointing. Looking ahead, while we are confident that we can maintain solid momentum in our wholesale business, we are cautious on the near-term outlook for our retail segment given the recent softness in traffic and sales trends.”
In addition to marketing products under its owned brands including Steve Madden, Steven by Steve Madden, Madden Girl, Freebird by Steven, Stevies, Betsey Johnson, Betseyville, Report Signature, Report, Big Buddha, Wild Pair, Cejon and Mad Love, the company is the licensee of various brands, including Olsenboye for footwear, handbags and belts and Superga and l.e.i. for footwear. The company also designs and sources products under private label brand names for various retailers. Its wholesale distribution includes department stores, specialty stores, luxury retailers, national chains and mass merchants. Steve Madden operates 121 retail stores (including the company’s four online stores).
