Abercrombie & Fitch

Abercrombie & Fitch credited an ongoing profit improvement initiative as driving its net income growth in the second quarter, which increased 13% to $12.9 million, from $11.4 million a year ago, and beat Wall Street estimates.

But the company’s revenue decreased 5.8% to $890.6 million in the quarter, and same-store sales dropped 7%, with U.S. same-store sales down 5%. The third quarter may see some progress, however, since it will include back-to-school sales.

Pacific Sunwear’s SVP of women’s merchandising and design Christine Lee has resigned. Filling the role on an interim basis will be Brieane Breuer, who joined PacSun in 2007 and is the company's current VP of women's design.

Breuer received her master's degree in fashion design and styling from Istituto Marangoni and during the past 13 years has held various merchandising and design roles at high-end fashion brands such as Valentino, as well as at Abercrombie & Fitch.

New Albany, Ohio - Abercrombie & Fitch Co. has initiated a process to refinance $500 million in existing credit facilities to two new facilities worth a total of $750 million. Proceeds are expected to be used to pay off a remaining $131.5 million balance and outstanding borrowings of $60 million related to existing credit facilities, and to pay related fees and expenses associated with the transaction.  

New Albany, Ohio -- Abercrombie & Fitch has reorganized its Diversity & Inclusion structure. Todd Corley, who has led the efforts since 2004, is leaving to launch the TAPO Institute, which will focus on inclusive leadership based on “principles of transparency, authenticity, persistence, and optimism,” Abercrombie said.

Washington, D.C. - Shop.org is adding two new members to its board of directors and welcoming back eight members that currently serve on the board. Each member will serve a two-year term.

New Shop.org Board members:

• Bryon Colby, senior VP of digital commerce, Cornerstone Brands/HSNi; and
• Deepika Pandey, group VP, customer experience, direct and digital marketing, Walgreen Co.

New Albany, Ohio – Abercrombie & Fitch is reportedly rolling out charging stations for mobile phones and tablets in its stores. According to TheStreet, there are currently two Abercrombie & Fitch stores with mobile charging stations installed, and the retailer plans to roll out the stations at several more Abercrombie and Hollister stores by the end of the year.

Late last week, Retailing Today reported the GNC CFO Mike Nuzzo had resigned his position to accept a role at a private equity-funded consumer products company. Today, 4moms, a special-purpose robotics company that makes high tech baby gear, confirmed that it has appointed Nuzzo as chief administrative officer and EVP of business development.

New Albany, Ohio — Abercrombie & Fitch Co. has named Christos Angelides president of its Abercrombie & Fitch and Abercrombie Kids brands, a position he is expected to take in October 2014. Angelides, 51, will report to A&F CEO Mike Jeffries and will have overall responsibility for all product and customer-facing activities for the Abercrombie & Fitch and Abercrombie Kids brands.  

He will also be accountable for the financial performance of the brands.

Store closings are hardly an infrequent topic in this space. As a barometer for both the performance of individual brands and the market at large, they are an important part of the equation for any retail analyst. Store closings are part of healthy portfolio management for any brand, and, on a larger scale, bankruptcies and reorganizations are a reflection of the market at work.

New Albany, Ohio – Abercrombie & Fitch Co. reported a net loss of $23.7 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2014, up from $7.2 million in the year-ago period, but less than analysts had expected. Restructuring charges associated with the closure of Abercrombie’s Gilly Hicks stand-alone stores, as well as the impact of heavy discounting on profit margins, helped drive the retailer’s net loss growth. The chain backed its full-year forecast as demand in its female business improved and sales fell less than expected for the first time in six quarters.