It’s been another week with far more retail news than there is time in the day. Below, we break down some things you may have missed during the week and what we’re still thinking about.
From a new CEO at Stila Cosmetics to Jägermeister’s dedication to cold shots, here’s our closeout for the week.
What you may have missed
Dick’s House of Sport loves Vuori
For the first time, experiential retail concept Dick’s House of Sport is launching a Vuori apparel assortment. The apparel and accessories, which are priced between $50 and $200, will be available at 12 locations beginning this month in a phased rollout, according to company information sent to Retail Dive.
“We see tremendous opportunity to introduce new and unexpected brands that move with our athletes — across activity, lifestyle and everything in between,” Lauren Salzinger, vice president of merchandising softlines at Dick’s Sporting Goods, said in a statement. “Vuori is an elevated expression of that shift and House of Sport allows us to showcase the assortment in a way that feels authentic to the brand.”
Stila Cosmetics names CEO
Beauty company Stila Cosmetics has appointed Daniel Annese as its CEO, according to a company announcement. He has served as a board adviser with the beauty company for the past three years.
Annese has been in the beauty industry for over 25 years, most notably with The Estée Lauder Companies, where he was global brand president and worked across brands including Estée Lauder, Tom Ford Beauty and Too Faced Cosmetics.
"I'm honored to step into this role and build on the momentum already in place as we continue to evolve the brand, accelerate innovation, and expand our global reach,” Annese said in a statement.
Retail therapy
Jägermeister debuts business division dedicated to ice-cold shots
Alcohol brand Jägermeister launched The Division of Jägermeister Dedicated to Ice Cold Shots, per a Monday press release. The playful division, part of a marketing campaign, is meant to promote the idea that the liquor is best served ice cold.
"Whether it's the first round of the night, a spontaneous cheers, or a moment worth celebrating, ice cold shots become a shared ritual," Cindy Wang Simms, chief marketing officer at Mast Jägermeister U.S., said in a statement. "Through this campaign we're showing our devotion to all things ice cold in a way that builds community around the ritual and creates more opportunities for people to connect, celebrate, and enjoy Jägermeister the way it was meant to be experienced."
The division, called D.I.C.S., will engage in on-site activations, influencer partnerships, social media content and more.
What we’re still thinking about
12%
That was the sales decline at Heydude, the DTC footwear brand owned by Crocs. Heydude’s wholesale revenue dropped 25% and, though its DTC revenue spiked nearly 9%, the results were a drag overall.
Crocs brand revenue edged up 0.8% – but that was not enough to prevent the company’s top-line from sliding nearly 2%.
Still, analysts considered this a good result for Heydude, given that they expected the comfy shoewear line to fall as much as 18%. Plus, the company raised its outlook for the struggling brand for the first time in nearly four years, Needham analysts led by Tom Nikic said in a Thursday client note.
What we’re watching
The brewing battle between Lululemon and Chip Wilson
As Lululemon’s annual shareholders meeting approaches, its arguments with founder Chip Wilson are heating up. In proxy materials filed this week, Lululemon outlined a history of communications with Wilson, mostly related to his recent slate of complaints against the athleisure business.
Wilson since December has been pushing for sweeping changes to Lululemon’s board of directors, bemoaning years of value destruction and pushing for the company to return to a product-first business.
In proxy materials, Lululemon described a pattern of behavior in which the board attempted to engage constructively with Wilson and his board nominees and then faced unexpected escalation by Wilson, largely in the form of public press releases Wilson felt “compelled” to share. That has led to the current standoff, in which shareholders will be able to vote on both Wilson’s board nominees and the company’s.
In addition to criticizing Lululemon’s leadership and pushing for his own board nominees, Wilson also “referenced his extensive involvement with competitors of the company” and told Lululemon that Alo Yoga and Vuori had “adopted his playbook” and sought his advice, according to the filings.
In his own sequence of events outlined in proxy materials, Wilson took aim at what he sees as insufficient engagement with his criticisms of the brand and highlighted his qualms with the current board makeup, including the number of board members tied to private equity firm Advent International. Via press release, Wilson urged shareholders to select his board nominees to head off “brand-drift.” He also criticized incoming CEO Heidi O’Neill, said Lululemon’s recent board nominees lack the required experience to turn the brand around, and argued that Lululemon’s international expansion and collaborations are efforts to mask long-term problems.
“It is only reasonable to conclude that the loss of lululemon's premium position in North America is the prologue to the eventual decline of sales in key international markets,” Wilson wrote. “Expanding into mass product lines has made the product presentation messy and customers are confused as to what lululemon is, resulting in them buying apparel from competitors with a clearer vision.”
