G-III Apparel's 5-year plan to reach $5 billion in sales

By

Olivier Guyot

Published
Aug 30, 2016

The contrast couldn't be more striking. Between the balance sheet for the quarter ended July 31 and the company's five-year plan, Morris Goldfarb, G-III Apparel CEO, is blowing hot and cold.

On the last three months of activity, the executive has watched his group’s business shrink. Specialized in the production and distribution of clothing under licenses (Tommy Hilfiger, Guess, Ivanka Trump, Karl Lagerfeld and Calvin Klein) and owner of brands like Vilebrequin, G.H. Bass and Andrew Marc, the group recorded a decline in sales of 7% compared to the same period last year, down to $442 million. Its operating income came close to $21 million last year but has meanwhile collapsed in the red to a negative $5,000,000. The company's net profit reached -$1.3 million versus +$12.4 million a year earlier. Management has revised its net sales forecast downward for the 2016-2017 fiscal year, which ends in January, now estimating $2.48 billion rather than its initial $2.56 billion.

That is quite some bad news. But Morris Goldfarb has an ambitious goal for the next five years. He intends G-III Apparel to grow its business through its licenses with Tommy Hilfiger, Calvin Klein and Karl Lagerfeld, but is especially betting on the integration of Donna Karan into the group. His wants to build upon the brand's women's clothing and accessories but also for lines for men.

The group expects Donna Karan and DKNY sales to reach $750 million in late 2018-2019, compared to the 2016-2017 goal of $325 million. In terms of profitability, the group expects losses of $10 million the first year, after which it is aiming for an operating income of $105 million. In five years, the group believes DKNY’s potential alone will top one billion dollars.

Overall, the CEO intends to reach the $5 billion sales mark at the end of its 2021-2022 financial year. Business for Donna Karan International trademarks would have to bring in over a billion dollars, but Karl Lagerfeld would earn $500 million, Tommy Hilfiger business over one billion dollars, Calvin Klein licenses would be worth $1.5 billion, while Vilebrequin would account for $250 million. The other licenses would make up the rest of this $5 billion bar.