Zumiez sees marginal rise in comparable holiday sales

Comparable sales at Zumiez Inc. increased 1.7 percent for the ten-week period ended January 9, 2021, while total sales decreased 0.7 percent impacted by required governmental closures and other restrictions associated with the Covid-19 Pandemic.

The company said in a statement that from a regional perspective, quarter-to-date North America net sales increased 0.2 percent with the U.S. up slightly while Canada was significantly impacted by store closures. Other international net sales, which consist of Europe and Australia, decreased 6.7 percent with Europe being the hardest hit by store closures and Australia performing extremely well during the holiday period. Excluding the impact of foreign currency translation, North America net sales increased 0.1 percent and other international net sales decreased 14.2 percent quarter-to-date.

Commenting on the update, Rick Brooks, Chief Executive Officer of Zumiez Inc., stated: “Similar to the trends we experienced around Black Friday in November, sales in the off-peak weeks in December were very strong, while the usual peak weeks that are heavily reliant on in-store sales were more challenged with less traffic and various Covid-19 restrictions.”

The company added that during the ten-week period, the hardgoods category provided largest comparable sales increase followed by accessories. Footwear was the largest negative comping category followed by womens and mens.