Fast Retailing's GU sees sales rising despite disappointing comps, Theory still struggles
At youth brand GU, in the three months through May 2025 (that is, Q3) revenue rose to ¥90.4 billion (€527bn/£454bn/US$615), up 4.1%, while operating profit rose 12.1% to ¥12.4 billion.
Despite strong sales of GU's range of Barrel Leg Pants, Sweat Look T-shirts, DRY T-shirts, and other items, same-store sales increased only slightly year-on-year 'due insufficient volumes and marketing of potentially promising products such as haori-style jackets and long T-shirts,' the company said.
Meanwhile, the nine months to May saw GU revenue up 4% to ¥256.2 billion and operating profit down 10.7% at ¥26.3 billion.
The gross profit margin declined as yen weakness pushed up the cost of sales. The selling, general and administrative expense ratio increased as the expansion in sales wasn't enough to counter higher costs in areas such as salaries.
As for the group's Global Brands, its said Q3 revenue declined 4.6% to ¥32.7 billion but operating profit increased 35.1% to ¥1.9 billion.
Revenue declined 'on the back of lacklustre sales at the Theory label. Both Theory Japan and Theory Asia reported lower revenue and profit levels 'on the back of struggling department store sales and declining consumer appetite for apparel, respectively'.
Meanwhile overall profit increased due to a contraction in losses at the Comptoir des Cotonniers label'. Revenue at Comptoir des Cotonniers declined because store numbers had been reduced, but same-store sales increased.
And in the nine months through May 2025, the segment reported a 3.1% drop in revenue to ¥100.5 billion but moved into the black with operating profit of ¥2.8 billion (it had made an operating loss of ¥0.3 billion in the previous year).
Q3 at PLST saw 'sharply higher revenue and profit on the back of strong sales of new products and overall strong sales, buoyed by successful product launches at the Thank You Festival'. The company didn't give any monetary figures or percentages for PLST.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
France 24
4 hours ago
- France 24
US and Japan strike trade deal, avoiding Trump's threat of 25% tariffs
05:52 From the show Reading time 1 min After months of negotiations, the US has reached a trade deal with Japan. US President Donald Trump celebrated the agreement on tariffs in a social media post, while Japan's Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba hailed the deal, which sets duties on Japanese exports to the US at a rate of 15 percent. In this edition, we look at what exactly has been announced by both sides and what it means for Japan's auto sector, which is responsible for a quarter of all exports to the US.
France 24
17 hours ago
- France 24
Trump agrees to small reduction in Philippine tariffs
Welcoming Marcos to the White House, Trump called him a "very tough negotiator" and said: "We're very close to finishing a trade deal -- a big trade deal, actually." In a social media post shortly afterward, Trump said that while the Philippines would open up completely to US goods, he would still impose a 19 percent tariff on products from the Southeast Asian country, a major exporter of high-tech items and apparel. "It was a beautiful visit, and we concluded our Trade Deal, whereby The Philippines is going OPEN MARKET with the United States, and ZERO Tariffs," Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. The Philippines was among two dozen economies confronted by Trump with letters this month warning of 20 percent tariffs on all goods coming into the United States as of August 1. The 19 percent rate is still above the 17 percent threatened by Trump in April, when he threatened sweeping global tariffs. The trade rift comes despite increasingly close defense relations between the United States and the Philippines, a former US colony and treaty-bound ally that has seen high tensions with China. The United States last year, under Trump's predecessor Joe Biden, deployed ground-launched missiles in the Philippines. Washington has also eyed ammunition manufacturing in the Philippines, despite the closure in 1992 of the US naval base at Subic Bay due to heavy public pressure. "All of what we consider part of the modernization of the Philippine military is really a response to the circumstances that surround the situation in the South China Sea," Marcos said next to Trump. Trump devoted much of the appearance to attacks on his Democratic predecessors Biden and Barack Obama. "We are essentially concerned with the defense of our territory and the exercise of our sovereign rights," said Marcos. "Our strongest, closest, most reliable ally has always been the United States." Trump eyes China visit China and the Philippines have engaged in a series of confrontations in the contested waters of the South China Sea, which Beijing claims almost entirely, despite an international ruling that the assertion has no legal basis. Trump has frequently questioned allies over their military spending, pondering why the United States should defend them in the NATO alliance. He has voiced fewer doubts about the Philippines. Both Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio in meetings with Marcos on Monday vowed to honor the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty with the Southeast Asian nation. The Trump administration has identified China as the top US adversary but the US president has also boasted of his relationship with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping. Speaking alongside Marcos, Trump said he would "probably" visit China at Xi's invitation "in the not-too-distant future." He said of Marcos: "I don't mind if he gets along with China very well, because we're getting along with China very well." Trump added the Philippines had been "maybe tilting toward China" and "we untilted it very, very quickly." "I just don't think that would have been good for you," Trump said. The US president credited himself with the shift, although the turn towards Washington began after the 2022 election of Marcos, before Trump returned to power. Marcos's predecessor Rodrigo Duterte had flirted with closer relations with China and bristled at US criticism over human rights under Biden and Obama. Duterte is facing charges of crimes against humanity at the International Criminal Court over a sweeping campaign against drug users and dealers that rights groups say killed thousands. © 2025 AFP
France 24
a day ago
- France 24
Coca-Cola plans US cane sugar alternative after Trump push
"We're going to be bringing a Coke sweetened with US cane sugar into the market this fall, and I think that will be an enduring option for consumers," said CEO James Quincey on a call with analysts. The company currently uses high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) for many of its US products -- a sweetener that has long drawn criticism from Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his "Make America Healthy Again" agenda. Trump last week said that the company had agreed to use cane sugar in the United States version of Coke. "This will be a very good move by them -- You'll see. It's just better!" Trump wrote on Truth Social. Coca-Cola at the time did not confirm the move even if it said it appreciated Trump's "enthusiasm" for its brand. In announcing the new option, Quincey insisted that the main Coke product would still be made with corn syrup, with the cane sugar version offered as an alternative. Mexican Coke -- which is made with cane sugar -- is often sold at a premium in US stores and prized for its more "natural" flavor. The US president did not explain what motivated his push for the change, which would not impact his well-known favorite beverage, Diet Coke. Since his return to the White House, Trump has reinstalled a special button in the Oval Office that summons a helping of the sugar-free carbonated drink. HFCS became popular in the 1970s, with its use skyrocketing thanks to government subsidies for corn growers and high import tariffs on cane sugar. Any shift away from corn is likely to draw backlash in the Corn Belt, a Midwestern region that has been a stronghold of support for Trump. Both HFCS and sucrose (cane sugar) are composed of fructose and glucose, but differ at the structural level. Those differences don't appear to significantly affect health outcomes, according to research. Trump's preferred Diet Coke is sweetened with aspartame -- a compound classified as a "possible carcinogen" by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC).
