The US fashion group Guess Inc. felt the effects of weak consumer sentiment at home in the first quarter of the 2023/24 financial year. The company had to accept a decline in sales and slipped into the red. However, the latest results have at least exceeded their own expectations, explained CEO Carlos Alberini in a statement.
For the three months ended April 29, consolidated revenue was $569.8 million, down four percent from the prior-year quarter. Adjusted for exchange rate changes, it fell by two percent. In the Americas, own-retail sales were down 14 percent (-13 percent at constant currency) to $143.5 million and wholesale sales were down 25 percent (-26 percent at constant currency) to $51.4 million.
Things looked better in the other important markets. In Europe, sales grew by two percent (+5 percent currency-adjusted) to USD 280.2 million, and in Asia they even increased by 26 percent (+34 percent currency-adjusted) to reach USD 70.8 million . Worldwide license revenue fell 10 percent to $23.9 million.
Higher costs and one-time charges meant that the group had to accept an operating loss of 0.9 million US dollars. In the same period last year, he had achieved an operating profit of 36.4 million US dollars. The bottom line was a net loss attributable to shareholders of $11.8 million after posting a surplus of nearly $8.0 million in the first quarter of the prior fiscal year.