Jack Wolfskin admits a lack of innovation

By

Sarah Ahssen

Published
Mar 29, 2013

Jack Wolfskin has completed a difficult fiscal year. The German outerwear brand/retailer reported a turnover of 351 million euros for 2012 compared to 355 million euros last year, one in which sales jumped 22.5%.

The drop in Germany and Austria is especially significant, as these are two important markets for the sports equipment manufacturer, which nevertheless reported strong performances in Asia, Great Britain and Eastern Europe. A 5% increase in apparel sale was not enough to offset the 8% drop in footwear.

“Despite the extremely unfavorable weather conditions, a lack of innovation and surplus stocks from last year, we managed to defend our position against the competition and continue to grow outside of our core markets,” said Michael Rupp, CEO of Jack Wolfskin, which was acquired by the Blackstone Group in July 2011.

To make up for this decline, Jack Wolfskin is pushing the growth rate of its collections at a maximum pace and has increased its investment in research and development. The company also continued to expand its retail network and currently has 350 franchise stores in Europe and nearly 500 in China. “In addition, we will continue to refine the brand profile and work more on the quality of our distribution,” said Christian Brandt, COO of Jack Wolfskin.

Christian Brandt is also taking over the company’s finances as CFO Andreas Klotz is leaving the company by mutual agreement at the end of August.