Business
Dr Martens shares have been stomped

American sales of Docs have dropped

Downward DOCS

Shares in iconic British bootmaker Dr Martens had to be temporarily halted yesterday, slipping ~30% after the company tempered its sales outlook for 2025 and announced that Ije Nwokorie, an ex-Apple senior director, would take the helm in an effort to reboot the company’s slumping fortunes.

The sole issue for Docs isn’t hard to diagnose: they just aren’t selling enough shoes. Sales were down 12% in the latest quarter, with US revenues sliding 31% year-over-year, after a rough winter for the brand when fewer shoppers picked up the chunky-soled leather boots over the all-important Christmas period. Activist investors, presumably unhappy with the stock’s ~85% drop since its early 2021 peak, have also been urging the company to undertake a strategic review.

Designed as a collaboration between a pair of German doctors and a family-run British shoemaker, Docs had humble beginnings as practical work boots that sold for £2 (~$5) a pair in 1960. Within just over a decade, however, the boots had worked their way into British subcultures like the ska and punk movements and soon stomped their way to cultural icon status.

Collaborations with everyone from Warner Bros and hypebeast brand Supreme to Jean-Michel Basquiat have helped the brand stay relevant. But, the company is now also battling competition from sprawling value sites like Temu, which Docs has accused of infringing on its trademarks by manipulating Google searches to make lookalike items appear above its results.

More Business

See all Business
$98B ⛽

The IATA released its latest financial outlook for the airline industry over the weekend, forecasting a $98 billion jump in the sector’s collective fuel bill. The world’s largest trade group representing airlines expects the oil spike to halve profits by 49% from last year to $23 billion.

The group also expects profit margins to halve year over year, falling from 2025’s 4.2% to 2%. Still, revenue is expected to climb to $1.17 trillion from $1.07 trillion.

A surge in the cost of jet fuel has rocked US and global airlines this year, leading Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, American Airlines, Southwest Airlines, JetBlue, and others to raise fares and ancillary charges like bag fees. Low-cost carriers, which operate on smaller margins, have been squeezed the hardest, resulting in Spirit’s shutdown.

“It’s a tough year for all airlines, especially those whose balance sheets had not yet recovered from COVID. And, of course, for those operating in the Gulf,” said IATA Director General Willie Walsh, who added that demand is holding up and about half of passengers expect to spend more on travel this year. “That bodes well for a strong northern summer peak season. The big unknown is how long travelers and shippers can tolerate the higher costs of connectivity.”

Hollywood Exteriors And Landmarks - 2025

1 year into the Switch 2, we might’ve seen the top of the console market

The Switch 2 launched on this day in 2025. Amid a rough year for consoles, Nintendo has logged a good one.

business

GM has reportedly rehired more than 100 former Cruise employees, 18 months after shuttering the robotaxi unit

GM has rehired more than 100 employees it let go early last year when it shuttered Cruise, its former robotaxi business, according to reporting by The Information.

The hiring spree, which also includes employees from Nvidia and Uber, is geared toward ramping up GM’s plans for personal-use self-driving vehicles and not robotaxis. The former had been the focus of Cruise, prior to GM shuttering it in 2024.

Reporting last fall revealed that GM was attempting to rehire some former Cruise employees, but the scope of that effort wasn’t clear. More than 1,000 employees were laid off when the automaker scrapped Cruise, which it invested $10 billion into.

Google’s Waymo, Cruise’s former chief rival, is now worth $126 billion after a $16 billion funding round earlier this year. The company says it’s serving 500,000 paid robotaxi rides per week in the US.

Reporting last fall revealed that GM was attempting to rehire some former Cruise employees, but the scope of that effort wasn’t clear. More than 1,000 employees were laid off when the automaker scrapped Cruise, which it invested $10 billion into.

Google’s Waymo, Cruise’s former chief rival, is now worth $126 billion after a $16 billion funding round earlier this year. The company says it’s serving 500,000 paid robotaxi rides per week in the US.

Stacked Cars in Parking Lot

With gas prices soaring, the humble sedan is making a comeback

Recent US sales data reveals a “sedanaissance” among major automakers like Honda, Hyundai, and Toyota.

Latest Stories

Sherwood Media, LLC and Chartr Limited produce fresh and unique perspectives on topical financial news and are fully owned subsidiaries of Robinhood Markets, Inc., and any views expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of any other Robinhood affiliate, including Robinhood Markets, Inc., Robinhood Financial LLC, Robinhood Securities, LLC, Robinhood Crypto, LLC, Robinhood Money, LLC, Robinhood U.K. Ltd, Robinhood Derivatives, LLC, Robinhood Gold, LLC, Robinhood Asset Management, LLC, Robinhood Credit, Inc., Robinhood Ventures DE, LLC and, where applicable, its managed investment vehicles.