Steve Madden sees strong recovery in retail channel; sales still not at pre-Covid levels

By

Robin Driver

Published
Jul 28, 2021

Steve Madden, Ltd. announced a year-over-year increase of 178.6% in Q2 revenue on Wednesday, growth driven by the company’s retail channel, which was, nonetheless, still not able to bring the New York-based footwear and accessories group’s total sales back up to pre-pandemic levels.
 

In the second quarter ended June 30, 2021, the company’s revenue totaled $397.9 million, up from $142.8 million in the prior-year period. Compared to the sales of $445.0 million reported by the company in the second quarter of 2019, prior to the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, Steve Madden, Ltd.’s revenues were down 11.3%.
 
Quarterly sales in the company’s retail channel totaled $132.7 million, representing increases of 220.6% and 63% when compared to the same periods in 2020 and 2019, respectively. According to a release published by the group, growth in the segment was led by an “exceptional performance” in its e-commerce business.

In the company’s wholesale business, sales increased 162.2% year over year to $262.1 million, with wholesale footwear posting a 154.1% rise and wholesale accessories and apparel seeing growth of 190.7%.
 
Quarterly net income attributable to the company came to $36.9 million, or $0.45 per diluted share, compared to a net loss of $16.6 million, or $0.21 per diluted share, in the same period in the previous year.
 
“We are excited about the strong and accelerated recovery we are seeing in our business.  Our second quarter results significantly exceeded our expectations, with earnings slightly ahead of pre-Covid-19 second quarter 2019,” said Edward Rosenfeld, chairman and CEO of Steve Madden, Ltd., which, aside from its namesake label, also owns the Betsey Johnson, Blondo and Dolce Vita brands, among others.
 
In the first half of the fiscal year, the company, which operates some 216 stores around the world, posted revenues of $753.7 million, up 51.6% from $497.0 million in the same period in 2020. Net income in the six-month period was $58.0 million, or $0.71 per diluted share, compared to a loss of $34.0 million, or $0.43 per diluted share, last year.
 
“Looking ahead, while the environment remains volatile, we are confident that the strength of our brands and momentum in our business position us to drive revenue and earnings growth in the back half of 2021 and beyond,” added Rosenfeld.
 
The company currently expects full-year revenue for 2021 to increase between 43% and 47% compared to 2020, while annual diluted earnings per share are predicted to be in the range of $1.90 to $2.00.