Following yesterday’s release of PVH Corp’s figures for the year and quarter ending 2 February 2025; Alice Price, apparel analyst at GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company, offers her view: “PVH Corp rounded off FY2024/25 on a disappointing note, with total revenue for the full year plummeting 6.1% to $8.7bn, as macroeconomic headwinds in key markets kept impeding growth. However, with rival Ralph Lauren continuing to outperform, growing 10.9% in the quarter to 28 December 2024, PVH cannot solely put this lacklustre performance down to the challenging economic environment, with its brands having also lost desirability among discerning consumers. Q4 saw some improvement, as though it declined 4.8%, 3% of this was attributed to the additional 53rd week in the comparative period, alongside 1% from the sale of its Heritage Brands women’s intimates business in November 2023, while it also exceeded its guidance of a decline of 6% to 7%. This suggests its PVH+ Plan is starting to have legs, as it focuses on developing its key growth categories, increasing consumer engagement and improving efficiencies. PVH remains cautious in its outlook for 2025, expecting sales in the first quarter to be between flat to a decrease of 2%, while its full year revenue is projected to be either flat or to increase slightly, showing that its strategy still has a long way to go before delivering a full turnaround.
“Tommy Hilfiger delivered the weakest performance, with full year revenue declining 4.9% to $4.6bn, and dropping 5.1% to $1.3bn in the fourth quarter, dragged down by its international business which declined 6.8% and 7.3%, respectively. This was attributed to its planned reduction of wholesale partnerships in Europe to drive more profitable sales in the region. Tommy Hilfiger’s North America business was much more resilient, with revenues remaining flat across both periods, owing to the greater appeal of its American heritage style. Calvin Klein was protected by underwear being more essential as shoppers cut back, reporting a dip of just 1.5% for the full year to reach $3.9bn, and Q4 falling 1.8% to $1.0bn, with its North American division slightly outperforming its international counterpart, declining 0.6% and 1.9% in FY2024/25, respectively. Both brands also benefited in North America from wholesale shipments being moved from the fourth quarter into the third during the comparative period, allowing a greater uplift.
“In the fourth quarter, PVH’s wholesale channel declined 4.6%, hindered by the sale of its Heritage Brands women’s intimates business, which accounted for 2% of this decline, as well as the reduction of its business in Europe. The group’s direct-to-consumer (DTC) operations performed similarly, declining 4.9%, dragged down by the performance of its owned and operated websites, which plummeted 10.0%, versus a decline of 3.6% in owned and operated stores. Its online performance was hindered by cautious consumers preferring to go into stores to try on premium items before splashing out. With its DTC online penetration also remaining low at 19.1%, it should drive further demand by making its delivery and returns options more competitive and making its social media more engaging. ”
