Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on February 25, 2025
By Helen Reid
LONDON (Reuters) -Sportswear group Amer Sports expects lower sales growth this year, the company said on Tuesday as it reported fourth-quarter results boosted by sales of Salomon shoes and expensive Arc'teryx jackets.
Amer, which listed in New York a year ago and owns the Salomon, Arc'teryx and Wilson brands, said the strong dollar would weigh slightly on its 2025 results.
Shares in Amer Sports fell around 2% as its revenue growth outlook of 13-15% for 2025 was weaker than analysts expected, and a decline from 18% growth in 2024.
Fourth-quarter sales were strong, however, growing 23% from a year ago, to $1.64 billion thanks to growth at its most profitable brand, Arc'teryx - which sells waterproof jackets for as much as $900. Amer Sports' revenue for the year was $5.18 billion.
Sales of Salomon shoes have also grown significantly, the company said, accounting for more than $1 billion of sales in 2024. Both brands have gained from a trend for hiking shoes and rugged outdoors apparel worn as streetwear.
Amer Sports saw especially strong growth in Asia, with quarterly sales up 53.9% in Greater China and 52.4% in Asia Pacific, while the Americas, its biggest region by revenue, grew 15.1%.
"The outdoor trend in China continues to be very strong, attracting younger consumers, female consumers, and even luxury shoppers," Amer Sports Chief Financial Officer Andrew Page told analysts on a call.
In an environment where many shoppers have cut back on non-essential spending due to high inflation, Amer's core customers around the world are "pretty resilient", Page told Reuters in an interview, but said Amer does not plan price hikes this year.
"Raising prices has not been a lever that we are pulling," Page said. "We do believe we have pricing power and we will continue to price competitively... but at the same time we do not want to detract our core consumer."
Page also told analysts Amer Sports was "well equipped" to navigate different tariff scenarios, ahead of potential U.S. tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and Vietnam, after President Donald Trump hiked tariffs on imports from China.
(Reporting by Helen Reid; Editing by Kirsten Donovan and Emelia Sithole-Matarise)
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