Express Q2 sales hit by waning comps, Bonobos exceeds expectations

Express Inc. (Expr) announced on Wednesday consolidated net sales for the second quarter fell 6% to $435.3 million, on the back of sales declines in the fashion group’s Express and UpWest brands.

For the thirteen weeks ending July 29, net sales decreased 15% to $394.4 million at Express and UpWest, ​with comparable sales down 14%. Likewise, comparable retail sales, which includes both Express stores and e-commerce, were down 13%, weighed down by retail store comps, which plummeted 21%. Comparable outlet sales decreased 17%.

Sales at the company’s Bonobos, which it acquired from Walmart in April, totalled $40.9 million, ror the three months,

Second-quarter net loss was $44.1 million, or $11.79 per diluted share, compared to net income of $7 million, or $2.05 per diluted share, in the second quarter of 2022.

“Second quarter net sales and diluted loss per share were within the ranges of our outlook and we are gaining momentum. In the Express brand, we drove significant, sequential improvement each month driven by a powerful trend change in our women’s and e-commerce businesses. This momentum continued through Labor Day,” said Tim Baxter, chief executive officer.

“Bonobos sales also exceeded our expectations, delivered operating income accretive to our total and is positioned to be a growth engine for Expr.

“We’ve also taken aggressive action to improve the bottom line. As a result of the ongoing comprehensive review of our entire expense structure, we have identified and implemented $80 million in savings in 2023, $120 million in 2024, and our commitment grows to $200 million by 2025. In addition to these substantial cost reductions, we’ve also secured a $65 million term loan, and expect to receive a $52 million CARES Act refund in the back half of the year, which bolsters our liquidity and allows us to continue to invest appropriately in our transformation,” continued Baxter.

Looking ahead, the company said its full-year outlook remains unchanged and it expects net sales of approximately $1.9 billion to $2 billion, including approximately $150 million in Bonobos net sales.

The earnings update comes one week after Express Inc. named Brian Atwood as its new creative director of footwear.