Genesco Inc. wants to win over younger consumers across its various retail outposts.
In a call with analysts on Friday, executives from the footwear powerhouse discussed how the chain is connecting with teenagers and other younger consumers via marketing efforts and a revamped brand assortment.
“We are taking a look at more specifically at who our consumer is,” said Genesco president, chief executive officer and board chair Mimi Vaughn in a call with analysts. “What’s been distinctive about Journeys is that we provide a place that the teen can go buy both their fashion athletic and their casual assortment.”
Specifically, Vaughn noted Journeys’ focus on teen girls within athletic and beyond, which is aided by investments in data to help the company understand its consumers more deeply.
“All teens aren’t alike,” Vaughn said. “Some tend to wear a more diversified assortment, some tend to like athletic more, some are fashion leaders. They’re ahead of the game and some are fashion followers.”
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When it comes to product, Vaughn said Journeys continues to “evolve” its fashion to meet the teen where he or she is. This means investing into several new brands. While Journeys continues to emphasize vulcanized, or hardened rubber, shoes, it is now focusing on expanding its assortment of sandals and athletic shoes, as brands finally catch up on the innovation lag that occurred throughout the pandemic.
“A diversified assortment across casual and fashion athletic categories that serves multiple wearing occasions is what’s resonating with the Journeys’ customer right now, and we’re responding to it,” Vaughn said.
Genesco’s Johnston & Murphy brand is also trying to target younger consumers with its new marketing campaign it launched last month. Dubbed “’Not Your Dad’s Shoe Company,” the idea is to highlight the brand’s transition into more casual, hybrid dress product that might appeal to younger consumers. Danny Ewoldsen, president of Johnston & Murphy, told FN in an April interview the brand has been moving in a more casual direction for some time now, but that the pandemic really kickstarted its turnaround.
“We are attracting younger customers into the brand,” Vaughn said of Johnston & Murphy in the call with analysts. “We’re going to reach a wider audience to tell J&M’s story and educate the consumer and appeal to a younger cohort at the same time that we are retaining the customers that we’ve been able to traditionally serve.”
Genesco on Friday reaffirmed its outlook for fiscal year 2025 after it reported sales and earnings results that beat its expectations for the first quarter. In the first quarter of fiscal 2025, the Nashville-based footwear company reported that net sales decreased 5 percent year over year to $458 million, driven by store closures, a decline in store sales and a decline in wholesale sales. Net loss from continuing operations was $22.9 million, adding up to a loss of $2.10 per share.
By banner, sales declined 5 percent at Journeys, 1 percent at Schuh, 4 percent at Johnston & Murphy and 25 percent at Genesco Brands. Comparable store sales declined 7 percent and comparable e-commerce sales jumped by 3 percent. E-commerce was responsible for 23 percent of total retail sales in Q1, up from 21 percent last year.
