Canadian lifestyle brand Roots announced on Wednesday a 9 per cent sales drop for the third quarter.
The Toronto-based company said sales decreased to US $ 63.5 million for the third quarter ended 28th October 2023, down from US $ 69.8 million in the third quarter of 2022.
In particular, direct-to-consumer sales including corporate retail store and e-commerce sales reached US $ 52.2 million, down 8.2 per cent year-over-year, with a significant decline in off-price sales offset by a 3 per cent increase in full-price sales.
Likewise, P&O sales, which includes wholesale branded products, and licensing agreements, totalled US $ 11.3 million, down 12.3 per cent. The decrease was in part due to timing shifts in custom Roots-branded product sales and reduced wholesale orders. Net loss for the company totalled US $ 0.5 million compared to US $ 2.2 million in Q3 2022.
“Our full-priced sales have shown resilience, underscoring the appeal of our latest products and the success of our intensified marketing strategies in the third quarter. However, the prevailing economic headwinds have altered consumer spending patterns and in the third quarter, we maintained a promotional discipline which influenced our off-price sales dynamics,” said Meghan Roach, president & CEO of Roots.
Total revenues so far this year have decreased by 3.9 per cent to US $ 154.4 million from the first nine months of fiscal 2022. By contrast, last year’s net income loss was US $ 6.3 million while this year’s loss is US $ 12.8 million.
Leslie Golts was appointed as Roots’ new chief marketing officer last month. Additionally, Joey Gollish was named a creative director in residence by Roots earlier this year.