Steve Madden revenues, earnings plummet on 'choppy retail environment'

By

Benjamin Fitzgerald

Published
May 10, 2023

American footwear brand Steve Madden announced on Tuesday a 17.1% plummet in first-quarter revenue to $463.8 million, following a double-digit decline in wholesale revenues and a dip in direct-to consumer sales.

The Long Island City, New York-based company said revenue for its wholesale business was $362.1 million, a 19.3% decrease compared to the first quarter in the prior-year, when wholesale revenue experienced outsized growth of 29%.

Likewise, wholesale footwear revenue decreased 18.6% compared to the first quarter of 2022, and wholesale accessories/apparel revenue decreased 22%.

Direct-to-consumer revenue was $99.6 million, an 8.1% decrease compared, driven by declines in both the brick-and-mortar and e-commerce businesses. 

Profit was also slashed with Steve Madden reporting a net income of $36.7 million, or $0.48 per diluted share, compared to $74.5 million, or $0.94 per diluted share, in the same period last year.

“In light of the challenging setup we faced in the first quarter – including a choppy retail environment, conservative order patterns from our wholesale customers, and difficult comparisons with the prior year – we were pleased to deliver revenue and earnings slightly ahead of expectations," ​said Edward Rosenfeld, chairman and CEO.

"We also further reduced our inventory levels while driving strong gross margin performance despite a promotional retail landscape, demonstrating the benefits and durability of our business model in challenging operating environments. As we move forward, we remain focused on executing our strategic initiatives – most importantly, utilizing our proven model to create trend-right products and bring them to market quickly – and are confident that we can drive sustainable growth and value creation over the long term.”

For 2023, the company continues to expect revenue will decrease 6.5% to 8% compared to 2022, while diluted EPS will be in the range of $2.39 to $2.49.