Dive Brief:
- Wolverine World Wide on Wednesday reported fourth-quarter revenue fell 6% year over year to $494.7 million. For the full year, the company reported about $1.8 billion in net sales, a 22% decrease.
- In Q4, the company’s activewear segment saw revenue fall 2.8%. Its work group, which includes Wolverine, Cat Footwear, Bates, Harley-Davidson Footwear and Hytest, saw revenue increase 20.6%.
- The company’s namesake brand grew the most, by 20.5%, and Merrell grew 1%. The other large brands saw declines, including Saucony and Sweaty Betty, which fell by 5.3% and 5.9%, respectively. For the full year, the footwear company’s work group revenue fell 5.3% and the active group fell 13.4%.
Dive Insight:
In 2023, Wolverine launched a transformation strategy that included workforce restructuring and the divestment of its Sperry brand. The footwear company looked to generate $215 million in annualized savings. In Wednesday’s release, CEO Chris Hufnagel said the company accomplished the objectives set in the plan and the Q4 results beat revenue expectations.
Hufnagel added that he believes the company hasn’t yet reached its full potential, but he’s encouraged by the work done so far.
“As we begin 2025, our brands are poised to continue to build on our momentum, standing on a much healthier foundation with stronger product pipelines and compelling storytelling. Our team is encouraged by the work we've accomplished together and excited to turn the page,” Hufnagel said.
The company set full-year 2025 revenue expectations of $1.795 billion to $1.825 billion, which would represent growth of about 2.5% to 4.3%.
The Q4 results come on the heels of several new executive appointments for the company.
Earlier this month, Wolverine named Brett Parent chief strategy officer, a new role at the company. Parent, who has been with the company for about 20 years, is responsible for enterprise strategy as well as assessing growth in the company’s portfolio.
Also this month, Wolverine named Richard Mcleod as chief marketing officer of the Merrell brand. McIeod was most recently chief marketing officer of Champion. At Merrell, he’s responsible for creating “modern integrated marketing capabilities to further cement the brand’s position as a global leader in the outdoor active and lifestyle space.”
In November, Wolverine hired Mike Maloney as chief product officer for its work group. The company also opened a new global innovation hub in Boston.
