Back in July, I read an article called, “High-skilled white-collar work? Machines can do that, too.” It talked about companies (Stitch Fix among them) using algorithms to design product and decide what and how much to buy when. Here’s the link. Two days ago my research department (whom I always hear from if I don’t […]
It’s a hell of a time to be in the business of putting on trade shows in the active outdoor business. Reed Exhibitions has “postponed” the January Agenda show in Long Beach and is planning to evolve it towards a consumer-oriented show. After last January’s show, I wrote that I didn’t think I’d be back […]
That’s not quite true. I want to talk about Sanuk, though probably for the last time. There’s not a mention of the once high-flying brand in the conference call, and it only comes up in the 10-Q because, inconveniently I imagine, they have to acknowledge its existence. For the quarter ended September Sanuk revenue was […]
It’s not my purpose to simply report earnings. That’s why you don’t see an article every time an industry public company reports. By waiting for the actual publicly filed document, I hope to glean a few pieces of information that might make you think-bring you up short even- and perhaps help you run your business […]
For its September 30 quarter, 436 store Big 5 reported a small decline in revenue and a larger decline in net income. More significant to me are comments in the conference call that suggest a very traditional retail focus, rather than one acknowledging the massive changes required to succeed at retail. Revenue in the quarter […]
I believe in cycles; there will be another recession (sooner rather than later is my personal belief). There will be another major stock market correction at the end of which will be glorious buying opportunities. We are coming to the end of another debt super cycle (see the book This Time is Different; Eight Centuries […]
Serendipitously, I hear this is also the last season of the TV show “The Walking Dead.” But while I expect that TV franchise to continue in some form, the same can’t be said for Sears. I know it’s supposed to be a restructuring, but no amount of financial engineering can compensate for Sears’ lack of […]
Back on September 11, due to some speculation in the media, Amer Sports confirmed that it had “…received a non-binding preliminary indication of interest…from a consortium comprising ANTA Sports Products Limited and the Asian private equity firm FountainVest Partners…” to buy all of Amer Sports’ shares at a cash price of forty Euros per share. […]
From time to time, just for fun, I review public filings of companies I haven’t written about. Hibbett Sports, with 1059 stores in 35 states at the end of their August 4th quarter, is one of those companies. The quote in the title got my attention, to put it mildly. It’s not quite as bad […]
On September 12, VF’s management team made a lengthy presentation to the investment community outlining Van’s expected future growth. In the accompanying press release they stated, “Over the next five years, the Vans® brand expects diversified and balanced growth across all product categories, channels of distribution and geographies, driven by disciplined execution and investment to […]
