Vans owner CEO says turnaround bid Is starting to gain steam

After a year on the job, the chief executive officer of beleaguered Vans owner VF Corp. says the worst of the apparel maker’s “horror story” is now behind it.

CEO Bracken Darrell, who took the reins in July of 2023, has been working to get the Denver-based company on solid footing following a lengthy period of contraction that has included weakness at virtually all of the company’s segments, from outdoor to active. In addition to Vans, VF owns the North Face, Timberland, Dickies and JanSport, among others. 

With the shares down more than 80% since the start of 2020, Darrell’s under pressure to make changes. He changed eight of the company’s top 11 executives, sold off the once-hot Supreme streetwear brand for $1.5 billion and is cutting back the company’s network of Vans stores, closing unprofitable locations.

When he took over, VF had “way too much debt,” Darrell said in an interview. Vans, VF’s biggest brand, was “in free fall.” 

A year later, and the turnaround efforts are starting to pay off. The company posted better-than-expected revenue in its fiscal first quarter, although sales are still falling, and a loss per share that was smaller than the market anticipated. 

“The debt’s now come under control,” Darrell said. VF had $3.9 billion of long-term debt at the end of June — down from $5.7 billion a year earlier. Darrell added that for VF’s biggest brands, “the decline rates, for the first time, are now starting to come down.” 

Investors are buying into the story, sending the shares up 7.1% on 7 August — the stock’s first daily share gain following an earnings report since 2022. 

“Slightly better-than-expected results are a step in the right direction,” Stifel managing director Jim Duffy wrote in an analyst note following the results released on Tuesday afternoon. Baird’s Jonathan Komp said that “turnaround strategies appear largely on track” while also noting the company’s “low financial visibility.” 

VF is “reducing costs, lowering our debt, resetting the US business and getting Vans back on track,” Darrell said on the analyst call. The Dickies brand is also refocusing on workwear, while changes are afoot at other brands as well. 

Despite Darrell’s enthusiasm, TD Cowen analyst John Kernan said the the company’s debt remains a concern, while Mitch Kummetz, a senior analyst at Seaport Research Partners said he would have liked more details about Vans during the company’s call with analysts. 

“These are the right moves, but it’s hard to bank on the right moves,” he wrote, referring to the company’s strategy on Vans. “They don’t always lead to the right results, especially in a competitive environment.”