Few New Zealand retailers have been spared in the age of inflation and Chinese giants such as Shein and Temu.
Perhaps none have had it as rough as those selling outdoor apparel.
On Feb 20, in a sign of the times, the shares of KMD Brands – the company that owns Kathmandu, Rip Curl and shoe brand Oboz – plunged almost 20 per cent to a new low shortly after a preliminary sales announcement for the half-year ending Jan 31.
The headline figure that triggered the collapse was a 21.5 per cent sales decrease in KMD’s Kathmandu division.
The result came just one day before another victim met its fate. Warehouse Group sold its outdoor equipment division Torpedo 7 to Tahua Partners for $1 after a similarly gloomy result “to focus on core brands”.
