Everything must go
Where dealing with its inventory glut is concerned, Nike is just aboutdoing it. Yesterday, the apparel giant reported that sales were up 14% to $12.3bn in its most recent quarter, but the company continues to carry a near-record level of stock, with inventory up 53% in the last 3 years.
Nike execs are at least “increasingly confident” that the company will exit the financial year with healthy inventory levels — the same, however, cannot be said for their biggest competitor in the sportswear scene.
Adidas is having a harder time with its own inventory issues, warning that 2023 could see the German company's first annual loss in 3 decades. That’s in part because of a uniquely-Adidas issue — the $1.3 billion worth of Kanye West-designed Yeezy stock that the company isn’t sure how to shift after cutting ties with the star due to antisemitic comments. So far, donating the shoes, selling them and giving the proceeds to charity or even burning the entire stock have been floated as potential solutions.
Just ship it
Having too much stuff isn’t an issue that the fitness and footwear giants are facing alone — shifting consumer demands, supply chain issues, and inflation have all combined in recent years to lead to bulging stockrooms in businesses across the US, including major retailers like Target and Walmart. And there’s only really one way to power through a stock backlog: sell the unwanted inventory at discounted prices.
