Footwear Insight

20 • Footwear Insight ~ July/August 2019 footwearinsight.com THE FOOTWEAR EYE DURING ITS GOLDEN ANNIVERSARY YEAR, THE MILAN, ITALY SHOE TRADE show is adding a special section devoted to sports and outdoor shoes. Situated in pavilion 7 during MICAM's Sept. 15-18 event, the Players District will present both lifestyle and performance footwear from American labels like Skechers and European brands Bjorn Borg, CMP, Dolomite, Joma Sports and Lotto. Within the District, The Arena area will host a series of performances and events focused on giving "body and shape" to the movements used in sports. l MICAM Opening Players District in September Skechers Sees Momentum Coming TRADE SHOW BUSINESS S kechers is bank- ing on DTC and interna- tional business for growth. Q2 results for Skechers, which included a nearly 11 percent increase in revenues to $1.26 billion and 69 percent improvement in earnings per share (EPS), exceeded Street guidance and sent SKX shares more than 9 percent higher. Skechers COO David Weinberg told analysts that the company sees "our momentum continuing in the back half of 2019." Skechers continues to believe that international, which currently represents nearly 56 percent of all revenues, can be the primary growth driver for its business. The company, which has plans underway to expand its corporate HQ in California, is forecasting international to grow at a "mid- teen rate" and DTC to rise at a "high single-digit rate" in H2. In Q2, international wholesale revenues jumped 18 percent on a nearly 31 percent increase in distributor sales, 13 percent improvement in joint ventures and 18.5 percent gain from wholly owned subsidiaries. On the DTC side where an upward trend continued into July, overall Q2 revenues increased 14.4 per- cent with the U.S. up 8.6 percent and international jumping nearly 26 percent. In the U.S., Q2 wholesale rev- enues declined 3.8 percent, better than expected, with the biggest increases coming from the brand's Men's Sport, streetwear and work- wear lines. Overall domestic sales rose 1.5 percent in the period, bolstered by the aforementioned 8.6 percent gain in DTC and 36 per- cent improvement in ecommerce. During the period, Skechers made its initial investment in a new joint venture in Mexico. — Bob McGee In Q2, international wholesale revenues jumped 18 percent on a nearly 31 percent increase in distributor sales

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