Wolford earnings to outstrip sales

Hosiery producer Wolford expects earnings for fiscal 2006 to rise faster than sales for the same period. The company unveiled preliminary sales for the year ending 30 April of €121.4m (£88.6m), up 4.4% on 2005, thanks to higher direct sales. The company also expects a "positive" sales trend for fiscal 2007.

Wolford will report its final sales and earnings results on 25 July.

www.wolford.com
17 May 2006

Wolford records sales rise

Luxury hosiery company Wolford recorded a 2.7 percent rise in sales for the first nine months of 2005/6. A strong Christmas season, end-of-season sales and improvement measures helped boost results. Total sales for the period rose to €92.9 million. Direct sales from retail activities rose 21.8 percent. The company said this was due to optimisation of the product mix which was well-received by customers. Third-quarter sales rose 3.2 percent.

Directly-owned and partner-operated boutique sales rose 12.7 percent in the first nine months. Bodywear performed very well, boosted by the expansion of product lines using high-end luxury materials like cashmere. “The respectable results were driven…by measures to strengthen the brand and optimise the distribution network,” said chief executive Holger Dahmen. “The new store concept in particular is very well received by shoppers and generated above-average sales growth in the boutiques involved.”

www.wolford.com
10 February 2006

Missoni partners with Wolford

Last week Wolford AG announced that Italian fashion house Missoni will be its new co-branding partner. After a successful run with world-renowned brands Karl Lagerfeld, Vivienne Westwood and Emilio Pucci, Wolford has managed to find yet another top fashion brand to collaborate with.

“By working together, both our houses will redouble our creativity and thus take innovation to new heights,” said Wolford chief executive Holger Dahmen. The first co-branded collection will be for spring/summer 2006. Details of the partnership will be made available at the end of this month.

Dahmen is confident that the new partnership will generate additional sales, which have been strong since the beginning of the fiscal year on 1 May 2005. “August brought a continuation of the rising trend seen in the first quarter. Sales this August show a significant growth compared with the same month a year ago,” he said. Wholesale sales, especially, have grown significantly and sales at the monobrand outlets operated by the company and its partners have shown strong growth since last year.

www.wolford.com
12 September 2005

Wolford Cuts Loss

Austrian hosiery and lingerie maker Wolford has reduced its net loss from € 2.36m to € 2.27m in the first quarter ended 31 July 2003, while sales for the quarter rose 9.8 per cent to € 23.5m. The company expects turnover to be flat at € 128,8m.

September 17 2003
www.wolford.com

Wolford returns to profit

Austrian hosiery and lingerie maker Wolford AG on Thursday said it returned to profit in the first nine months of the current financial year. Wolford also predicted an operating profit for the full year. The company posted a pre-tax profit of euro 2.6m for the nine months to 31 January 2003. In the same period last year, pre-tax profit was at break-even point. Wolford's gross profit increased by 24.4 per cent to euro 6.8m.
Sales for the nine-month period declined by 6.6 per cent to € 98.8m, mainly due to the closure of loss-making Wolford boutiques. For the full year ending 30 April 2003, the company expects a decline in turnover of approximately seven per cent.

March 14, 2003
www.wolford.com

Lagerfeld to design hosiery

Austrian hosiery company Wolford and Karl Lagerfeld have teamed up for the production of a Karl Lagerfeld collection, which will hit stores next autumn. The Lagerfeld-collection will contain 22 pieces and the German designer has signed on to be Artistic Director. He will be involved from the very first sketches to the final packaging designs.
A sneak-preview will be presented in the Lagerfeld Gallery Fall-Winter 2003/04 fashion show. The collection will be distributed through the Wolford and Lagerfeld Gallery International retail networks.

January 30, 2003
www.wolford.com