Pandemic Took 16% Bite From Fossil Q1 Sales, E-Commerce Gains; Stock Up

Store closures and supply chain disruptions sent Fossil Group down 16% for Q1 ended April 4. The pandemic diverted traffic to Fossil’s e-commerce sites where visits soared 150% in April and 200% in May compared with 2019, said CEO Kosta Kartsotis on a Wednesday call. Fossil expects its direct-to-consumer channel will be nearly 60% of its global sales in the second half of its fiscal year. E-commerce was about 10% of sales in Q1 and is expected to exceed 30% this quarter, he said. Connected watch sales declined by high-single digits in Q1, said Chief Financial Officer Jeffrey Boyer. The company expects Q2 sales will decline 60%-70% with “the majority of our global business effectively closed during April and May,” said Boyer. “Ongoing strength” in e-commerce will “partially offset” brick-and-mortar declines, he said. The stock closed up 14% Thursday at $4.36.