Superdry calls in advisors to help cut costs

While Superdry had seemingly appeared to be on the road to recovery after it secured a refinancing deal, the brand is hiring a set of extra hands to support this phase.

On the back of a profit warning in January, the company has now confirmed that it has tapped Interpath Advisory to help it cut costs.

In a statement to FashionUnited, the brand said: “While Superdry has seen strong store and online trading and the brand continues to resonate with consumers, these are challenging market conditions for all brands in the fashion sector.

“We have engaged Interpath to advise us as we work to complete the turnaround of Superdry in today’s much changed retail environment, and ensure we have the right cost base and structure in place for future success.”

Challenging market headwinds

While the exact details of what the deal will entail have not been commented on by Superdry or Interpath, the decision comes in light of the challenging market conditions the clothing brand has continued to tackle, seeing it regularly report underperforming sales.

The brand’s revenues were hit by declining consumer confidence and lockdown restrictions at the beginning of the pandemic, with its co-founder Julian Dunkerton returning to the business as CEO in order to drive a turnaround.

Initially, it seemed Dunkerton’s efforts had paid off, with Superdry reporting a revenue increase in the H1 of FY22, backed by strong performance and jacket sales.

Just one month later, the brand’s optimism was dampened when it ended up lowering its FY profit outlook due to increasing uncertainty on Q4.

Interpath stepping in also comes on the back of speculation that Dunkerton was potentially considering taking the company private, however the claims were later refuted by Dunkerton, who said in a statement on the London Stock Exchange that there were “no plans to do this at the moment”.