Key Takeaways:
- Salty Crew’s growth is being fueled by surf, tackle and sporting goods specialty retailers and a new push into women’s product.
- Salty Crew, Globe and FXD combined drove 13.2% EBIT growth for the year.
- Net profit rose 12.3% for the year, and the board raised the dividend 15%.
Globe International Limited closed out its fiscal year ended June 30, 2026 with its bet on three core brands, Salty Crew, the Globe brand and FXD, paying off. Globe International CEO Matt Hill spoke with SESO about what’s driving that growth brand by brand, starting with Salty Crew.
The company’s three core labels, Salty Crew, the Globe brand and FXD, pulled in AUD $183.1 million ($131.5 million) in revenue for the year, up 4.3%, and AUD $28.6 million ($20.5 million) in branded EBIT, up 13.2%.
That growth came even as total group revenue held roughly flat at AUD $206.4 million ($148.3 million), the result of a multiyear rationalization that’s taken Globe International’s portfolio from more than 20 brands in fiscal 2019 down to three core names.
Net profit after tax rose 12.3% to AUD $11 million ($7.9 million), and EBIT climbed 13.4% to AUD $16.6 million ($11.9 million).
Salty Crew’s Growth Channels and Investment
Globe International doesn’t break out Salty Crew’s revenue or EBIT individually, but the company is putting fresh investment behind the brand heading into FY27.
Globe International acquired a 50% stake in Salty Crew, along with operational control of the brand, in 2017.
Which channels and regions are showing the most growth for Salty Crew right now, and are there particular product categories driving that?
Matt Hill, Globe International CEO: The surf, tackle and sporting goods specialty retailers have shown the most growth in the last 12 months. We are seeing this growth in four key areas: the Southeast, Hawaii, California and the mid Atlantic.
While our largest categories (T’s and hats) have been maintaining nicely, the standout categories have been men’s shorts, technical product, sun protection and UV wovens as well as all things women’s, including swim.
How is the company investing in Salty Crew’s growth right now, whether that’s marketing, retail doors, headcount or something else?
Matt Hill: The investment focus in our FY27 for Salty Crew is primarily around retail marketing and women’s. We’ve brought on new sales and marketing personnel to drive these areas. We are also putting additional investment into ads/media around the men’s “Gear Matters” campaign to support franchise awareness in our proven men’s categories.
Globe Brand’s Footwear Run
Footwear has been a growth driver for the Globe brand this year, building on a broader shift the company has made across its portfolio toward apparel and footwear and away from hardgoods.
How much have broader footwear trends, like the renewed interest in ’90s and retro skate styles, helped drive the Globe brand’s growth this year?
Matt Hill: Definitely we have seen a resurgence in Globe heritage footwear over the past few years with steady growth, but the interesting thing is that our more modern skate and lifestyle footwear has actually kept up pace with that, and so our footwear growth has come from both segments of the line across core retail, mainstream retail and our own DTC.
FXD’s U.S. Expansion
The company says its workwear brand FXD is really strong in Australia, and Globe International has spent the past several years building out a U.S. presence for it.
The U.S. presence is still early. What does the next 12 to 18 months look like as you expand here – what retail partners are you targeting? Are you leaning into wholesale or DTC first, and what is the timeline to profitability in this market?
Matt Hill: FXD in the USA has been a solid performer for us and is a profitable contributor to the North American division already.
We have seen consistent expansion of the brand across product categories with the footwear program now introduced. Currently we are placed in hundreds of the top premium workwear doors in the USA with solid support and sell through.
The brand is strongest in the Northeast and Pacific Northwest so we have some good territory expansion and penetration to continue to chase down.
As far as DTC, the North American FXD business is one of our stronger DTC plays we have across the group and helps us reach customers around the country that might not have a nearby brick-and-mortar retailer, as well as help us tell the FXD story here in the USA.
Europe’s Turnaround
Europe was the smallest of Globe International’s three regional segments in FY26, but it posted the sharpest turnaround, growing revenue 19% to AUD $29.3 million ($21 million) and swinging to AUD $1.1 million ($0.8 million) in segment EBIT.
What specifically changed in that division, and is that growth rate sustainable into FY27, or was some of it a bounce-back from a low base?
Matt Hill: The European division had undergone massive change in the past two years to facilitate the growth this past year and hopefully into the future years. This involved repositioning and focus of Globe and Salty Crew product and channel distribution alongside a management and operational overhaul in the region.
New brand focus, new staff, new offices and distribution capabilities all helped drive revenue growth, drastically improve margins and operate off a more efficient operational base. As revenue continues to grow, we should see that drop through to the bottom line and increasingly higher profitability and gross profit dollar contribution from the European division to the group.
The Rest of the Numbers
By region, Australia remained Globe International’s strongest market despite soft retail conditions, delivering AUD $99.5 million ($71.5 million) in revenue and AUD $15.7 million ($11.3 million) in segment EBIT.
North America contributed AUD $77.5 million ($55.7 million) in revenue and AUD $8.8 million ($6.3 million) in segment EBIT.
Outside the core three brands, Globe International’s smaller and emerging brands, including Impala Rollerskates, S-Double, Ritual Vision, Szade and XDMG, brought in AUD $23.3 million ($16.7 million) in revenue and posted an AUD $3 million ($2.2 million) branded EBIT loss, as the company kept shedding lower-margin, non-strategic labels. Ritual Vision was named Breakthrough Surf Brand of the Year at the Australian Surfing Awards in late 2025, according to the company.
Looking to FY27, Globe International said it expects further growth across its core and emerging brands, with all three regions improving.
