A couple of decades ago, a slump in Kohl's sales was always co-incident with, or predicting, a recession. Let's hope things have changed.
The latest quarter: net sales were off 4.2%, with comparable-store sales off 5.1%. Remember: those numbers are NOT adjusted for inflation. Their sales (Y-to-Y) are off more than 4.2%.
Here's what they had to say:
...“We have taken significant action to reposition Kohl’s for future growth. However, our efforts have yet to fully yield the intended outcome due in part to a continued challenging consumer environment and softness in our core business. During the second quarter, our customers exhibited more discretion in their spending, which pressured our sales even as customers transacted more frequently. This overshadowed strong performance in our key growth areas, including Sephora, home decor, gifting, and impulse. In spite of this, we continued to execute well operationally, enabling us to deliver a 13% increase in earnings driven by gross margin expansion and strong inventory and expense management.”...
Cute phrase, 'more discretion in their spending.'
The good: they managed to increase earnings.
We'll see how this all plays out.
No comments:
Post a Comment