Duluth Trading eCommerce Slips as Shoppers Return to Stores

Customers returned to brick-and-mortar Duluth Trading Company stores in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2021, but women had a harder time finding some of the casual apparel and accessories than in the past, especially in the three-month period ending Jan. 30, 2022, according to a Thursday (March 10) press release.

Supply chain issues led to some women’s gear being out of stock, meaning the company saw lower sales in that segment of its shopping population. And Duluth shoppers showed they’d prefer to shop in stores rather than online if a pandemic doesn’t keep them quarantined at home.

In Q4, Duluth’s net sales increased 5.8% to $270.8 million, up from $256 million in the same period a year ago. Retail store net sales increased by 32.8% to $91.1 million, but direct-to-consumer net sales dropped 4.1% to $179.7 million from Q4 last year, when Duluth offered heavy discounts and couldn’t generate foot traffic because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Direct-to-consumer net sales increased 5.7% from the fourth quarter of fiscal 2019 to 2021 Q4.

“2021 was a year of evolution for Duluth Trading as we embarked on a journey to position our business to better compete and enable long-term growth,” President and CEO Sam Sato said in the earnings announcement.

“Our company’s mission has long been grounded in the belief that there’s always a better way and we have never been more confident in our ability to execute our Big Dam Blueprint as we march to our goal of $1 billion in sales,” he said.

Net sales in Duluth’s store markets increased 10.8% to $186.3 million, up from $168.1 million in the same period in fiscal 2020, thanks to increased in-store traffic. Net sales in non-store markets dipped 3.7% to $82.5 million, down from $85.6 million in the same period a year ago.

Men’s apparel net sales increased 7.0% and women’s apparel net sales decreased 3.7%, in large part because of inventory delays on woven tops.

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