Corporate rightsizing has so far dominated business strategies in 2024.
A steady stream of those headlines came last month and captured reader attention, with six of the 10 most popular stories on Shop Eat Surf being those related to restructures. Most notable among them is what’s taking place at Vans’ parent VF Corp.
Take a look back at which stories received the most reads from SES readers in February.
Rip Curl Responds to Backlash Over Work with Transgender Surfer
SES file photo.
Rip Curl’s work with transgender surfer Sasha Jane Lowerson didn’t receive quite the reaction the surf company’s marketing team might have hoped for.
Backlash mounted against the company’s work, which ran in January, before Rip Curl broke its silence and released a statement addressing the matter.
Find the full story and statement here.
S&P: VF Will Need to Sell “Sizeable” Brands to Ease Debt Burden
Photo courtesy of VF Corp.
S&P Global cut VF Corp.’s corporate rating last month, suggesting the company will need to conduct a “sizeable” asset sale to make a dent in its debt load. The ratings agency report comes as VF looks to make headway on a turnaround of its business and reviews its entire brand portfolio.
Read more about what S&P wrote on VF Corp. by clicking here.
Vans Down 29%; VF Announces Strategic Review of Portfolio
Photo courtesy of Vans.
VF Corp. President and CEO Bracken Darrell confirmed the company’s entire brand portfolio is in the midst of a strategic review as its latest earnings report revealed a dip in VF sales of 17% to $2.96 billion in the quarter ended Dec. 30.
Not even the company’s four largest brands – Vans, The North Face, Dickies, and Timberland – are exempt from the internal process with Darrell saying there are “no sacred cows” as VF focuses on reducing its debt and placing Vans back onto a growth path.
To read the full story, click here.
VF to Shutter Santa Fe Springs Distribution Center
More layoffs hit VF with the company warning the state of 255 cuts at its Santa Fe Springs, California, distribution center. The facility is ultimately slated for closure later this year.
That follows the elimination of 42 jobs at Vans’ Costa Mesa headquarters, which was confirmed in January. The streamlining is part of a broader turnaround under VF’s “Reinvent” plan.
More details can be found here.
Authentic Brands Launches Online Shop Amid Reports of IPO
The Volcom landing page on the authentic.com online shop.
Authentic Brands Group quietly launched an online marketplace and membership program for some of its portfolio brands.
The online shop, called Authentic, is stocked with merchandise from industry brands such as Spyder and Volcom, in addition to Forever 21, Eddie Bauer, and Brooks Brothers, among other Authentic divisions.
Read more about the shop and Authentic Membership here.
For the stories rounding out the top 10 most read on SES in February, please see the following:
