Ugg looks to Post Malone and sneaker-inspired shoes to win men over

South China Morning Post

19 hours ago

Thanks to a clog that looks like a sneaker, Ugg is increasingly becoming a men's brand and boosting what was already one of the hottest shoe lines in the footwear industry.
Sales of the Ugg brand, which is owned by Deckers Outdoor Corp., rose 19 per cent last quarter, with the growth in men's products nearly doubling that rate.
Ugg still sells more to women, but its men's business is gaining ground after expanding its offerings over the last few years, including those
for spring and summer – part of the brand's broader push to increase sales outside its core winter season of selling sheepskin boots.
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A promotional shot of the Ugg PeakMod for men, in Dark Sand. Photo: Handout
To promote Ugg, Deckers brought on singer
Post Malone last year, and has done collaborations with celebrities and designer brands. Ugg also tapped into fashion trends. Earlier this year, it released the PeakMod, a chunky clog with sneaker styling that fits into the uglycore aesthetic, which became popular after the pandemic with its blurring of homey comfort and streetwear.
Stefano Caroti, CEO of Deckers, said last week on an earnings call that the 'men-specific clog' had become a favourite across several geographies. Earlier in the year, he said that the company sees 'tremendous potential' to accelerate Ugg adoption with male consumers.
Investors will no doubt want to see more of that. Ugg is the company's biggest brand, with sales rising 13 per cent to US$2.5 billion in the financial year through March.
Singer Post Malone wears Ugg boots in a brand campaign from last November. Photo: @ugg/Instagram
The company's stock took a big hit in January when its revenue forecast trailed estimates. Although the shares are down more than 40 per cent this year, they've been rebounding. That includes a big jump last week when its sales for the quarter through June beat the average Wall Street estimate on the strength of Ugg, which accounts for about 51 per cent of annual sales at Deckers. (Hoka, a running brand that also posted robust growth, makes up roughly 45 per cent of company revenue.)
While still recovering from earlier in the year, Deckers has emerged as one of the strongest performers in the footwear space, according to David Swartz, a senior equity analyst at Morningstar.