North Face 2004 Annual Report Download - page 21

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39
VF C O R P O R A T I O N 2004 Annual Report
O U T D O O R We have a vibrant and
growing portfolio of international
brands in our O utdoor coalition. W ith
the addition of three outstanding new
brands, 2004 was a busy year for us.
Combined sales for The North Face®
,
JanSport®and Eastpak®brands grew
21% percent in 2004. Total sales
jumped 73%, reflecting the acquisi-
tions of the Vans®
,Napapijri®and
Kipling®brands.
The North Face®
:Premier, Authentic,
Technical and Innovative The North Face®
brand is the number one technical outdoor
brand in the world. Offering the most
advanced products on the market,
The North Face®brand is the choice of
the world's most accomplished climbers,
mountaineers, skiers, snowboarders and
explorers. The strength of the brand led
to growth in all product categories in 2004,
led by footwear and snowsports.
We opened a new retail store in
Boston, bringing the total of owned
retail stores in the U.S. to eight.
And we are partnering with key retail
customers to add locations; in 2004
we added stores in Olympic Valley,
California and Vail, Colorado.
We also opened partnership stores
in Amsterdam, H elsinki and St. Petersburg,
plus three in Asia, for a total of eight stores
internationally.
The prospects for continued growth are
bright and we’ll continue to leverage our
material and design innovation to drive sales,
particularly in outerwear, sportswear, footwear
and snowsports. The brand has room to
expand internationally, and we’re looking for
growth in markets such as Russia, Poland
and the Czech Republic.
JanSport®and Eastpack®
:Leading the Market
in Packs Our JanSport®brand continues as
the number one daypack in the world. In
2004 we launched the JanSport®Modus™line,
a comprehensive collection of luggage and
bags created for young adult business travelers.
We also extended our apparel offerings
into young men’s and juniors outerwear.
The brand’s presence in Europe is gaining
recognition for its computer bags featuring
our ShockShield™protection system.
Positioned to appeal to the young and hip,
our Eastpak®brand is the number one pack
brand in Europe. We’re looking forward to
our first foray into apparel with the launch
of men’s and women’s apparel in 2005, and
the opening of our first retail store in Milan.
The New Brands: Vans®
,Napapijri®and
Kipling®With roots extending back to
1966, the Vans®brand is known as the
original skateboard shoe. Since then, the
company has continued to create footwear,
apparel and accessories for the skate, surf
and snow markets that embody Southern
California youth culture.
The Vans®brand provides us with an entry
into the action sports market, and provides a
new channel of distribution — action sport
stores and teen lifestyle chains. Vans operates
96 retail stores and has about one third of
sales coming from overseas markets.
We bolstered our sportswear expertise in
Europe with the acquisition of the Napapijri®
brand of premium outdoor lifestyle apparel.
We’re leveraging their great design talent to
enable additional growth for The North Face®
brand in Europe and to assist in the European
launch of our Nautica®brand.
The mission for our new Kipling®brand
is to be the best women’s casual bag brand in
the world. Kipling®brand products include
handbags, luggage, backpacks and accessories.
Under license, other Kipling®brand categories
include eyewear, footwear, home products,
jewelry and watches. The company has
16 owned retail stores throughout Belgium,
H olland and the U.K., with distributors
operating over 70 more in Europe and Asia.
We have aggressive growth plans for our
Outdoor businesses, and acquisitions are
likely to be an important component of
that growth.
JanSport
Eastpack
The North Face
Trans by JanSport
Vans
Napapijri
Kipling
C H A N N E L S O F D I S T R I B U T I O N
B R A N D S U N I T E D S TAT E S I N T E R N AT I O N A L
Department Mass Specialty Department Mass Specialty
Store Market Store Store Market Store
JanSport ●●●●
Eastpack ●● ●
The North Face ●●●●
Trans by JanSport ●
Vans ●●●●
Napapijri ●●
Kipling ●●●●