(Filed Under wholesale Lingerie News). Sales at Wacoal International Corp., the Wacoal division that covers the U.S. and all of the Americas, jumped to 7,435 million yen (roughly $67.4 million at current exchange rates) in the quarter ended June 30, 2021, up from 3,404 million yen (about $30.9 million) in the same period last year.

In the quarter, operating income at the division rose to 1,099 million yen (about $10.0 million), compared to a loss of 837 million yen (about $7.8 million) in the same quarter last year.

Sales growth at this division of the Japan-based global lingerie giant, was “due to strong sales from Wacoal America Inc. and Intimates Online, Inc.,” the Lively division, “resulting from the growth in consumer spending driven by loosened COVID-19 restrictions and the Economic Impact Payments made by the government. In comparison with the three months ended June 30, 2019, sales increased by 48.1% (an increase of 47.5% on a Japanese yen basis). Sales from Wacoal America, Inc., which distributes “Wacoal” and “b.tempt’d” brand products, increased by 130.7% as compared to such sales for the corresponding period of the previous fiscal year due to a recovery in sales from physical stores, in addition to high growth achieved through e-commerce sales. In addition, the e-commerce business of Intimates Online, which distributes the “Lively” brand, continued to grow as a result of an increase in the number of repeat customers, and the delivery to Target Corporation, a major retailer in the United States, also contributed to expanded sales, which increased by 72.5%.”

The jump in operating income was “due to the favorable effect of increased revenue and an improvement in the gross profit rate, despite an increase in our e-commerce-related growth investments. In comparison with the three months ended June 30, 2019, operating income increased by 27.2% (an increase of 26.6% on a Japanese yen basis).”

Sales at Wacoal Europe, which includes the brands Elomi, Fantasie, Freya, and Goddess, jumped to 4,037 million yen (about $36.6 million) up from 1,668 million yen (about $15.1 million). Operating income rose to 566 million yen (about $5.1 million), up from a loss of 224 million yen (about $2.0 million) in the same quarter last year.

The sales rise at the Wacoal Europe division was “due to the recovery trends across all areas following the loosening of COVID-19 measures, despite some regional disparities. In comparison with the three months ended June 30, 2019, sales increased by 5.8% (an increase of 14.8% on a Japanese yen basis). While the level of sales in Europe and North America has recovered to the pre-pandemic level, sales in the United Kingdom have not yet reached such level due to the negative impact of closings of our core clients.”

The operating profit was “due to the effect of increased revenue. In comparison with the three months ended June 30, 2019, operating income increased by 54.5% (an increase of 67.5% on a Japanese yen basis).”

Parent company Wacoal Holdings Corp., earned a profit of just 472 million yen (about $4.3 million) on total global sales of 42,305 million yen (about $383.8 million).

“The business of our group during the current cumulative first quarter (April 1, 2021 – June 30, 2021) has continued to be difficult due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic,” the The company complained. “While our sales in the United States were strong as a result of progress in vaccination and its economic policies, our domestic business was impacted by a decrease in demand especially in the metropolitan areas due to a number of states of emergency and implementation of focused preventative measures. In addition, the future remains uncertain due to the spread of highly-infectious coronavirus variants.” — NM

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Published 08-13-2021 by Nick Monjo