Express 2015 Annual Report Download - page 4

Table of Contents
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In this section, "Express", "we", "us", "the Company", and "our" refer to Express, Inc. and its consolidated subsidiaries as a combined entity. Our fiscal year
ends on the Saturday closest to January 31. Fiscal years are referred to by the calendar year in which the fiscal year commences. All references herein to
"2015", "2014", and "2013" refer to the 52-week periods ended January 30, 2016, January 31, 2015, and February 1, 2014, respectively.
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Express is a specialty apparel and accessories retailer offering both women's and men's merchandise. We have over 35 years of experience offering a distinct
combination of style and quality at an attractive value, targeting women and men between 20 and 30 years old. We offer our customers an assortment of
fashionable apparel and accessories to address fashion needs across multiple aspects of their lifestyles, including work, casual, jeanswear, and going-out
occasions.
As of January 30, 2016, we operated 653 stores across the United States, in Canada, and in Puerto Rico, including 81 factory outlet stores. Our stores are
located primarily in high-traffic shopping malls, lifestyle centers, outlet centers, and street locations, and average approximately 8,650 gross square feet. We
also sell our products through our e-commerce website, www.express.com, and our mobile app, and have franchise agreements with franchisees who operate
Express locations in Latin America, the Middle East, and South Africa. Our 2015 merchandise sales were comprised of approximately 63% women's
merchandise and approximately 37% men's merchandise.
We report one segment, which includes the operation of our brick-and-mortar retail and outlet stores, e-commerce operations, and franchise operations.
Additional information about our reportable segment can be found in Note 2 of our Consolidated Financial Statements.
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We believe that our primary competitive strengths are as follows:
Established Lifestyle Brand. With over 35 years of heritage, the Express brand represents a distinctive point of view that is confident, sexy, and vibrant. We
believe that our customers view Express as a fashion authority and look to us to provide them with the latest fashions that meet their multifaceted lifestyles
and allow them to express their individual styles. The Express brand differentiates itself by offering (1) a balanced assortment of core styles and the latest
fashions; (2) products that address fashion needs across multiple wearing occasions, including work, casual, jeanswear, and going-out; and (3) quality
products at an attractive value.
Data Driven Processes. Our data driven processes allow us to test approximately three-quarters of our merchandise in select stores and online before placing
orders for our broader store base. In addition, we assess sales data and new product development on a weekly basis in order to make in-season inventory
adjustments where possible, which allows us to respond to the latest trends. We believe that we have an efficient, diversified, and flexible supply chain,
including a network of buying agents and third-party manufacturers located throughout the world, that allows us to quickly identify and respond to trends
and bring a tested assortment of high quality products at competitive prices to our stores.
Strong and Tenured Team. Our leadership team has extensive experience in the specialty retail apparel business, including in the areas of fashion design and
merchandising, manufacturing, marketing, customer experience, e-commerce, store operations, technology, planning and allocation, and real estate, as well as
other diverse business experiences that we believe are valuable to us as we continue to execute our growth strategy. Experience and tenure with Express
extends deep into our organization, including district and store managers.
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The majority of our apparel designs are created by our in-house design team, and we believe we have developed a portfolio of apparel products that have
significant brand value, including the Portofino shirt, Editor pant, and 1MX shirt. We focus on providing our customers with attractively-priced merchandise
that is well-constructed and made from quality materials that are designed to last for several seasons, and believe our customers value our consistent fits and
detailing.
We plan our product assortments and display them in our stores and online in a coordinated manner to encourage our customers to purchase multi-item
outfits as opposed to individual items. We believe this allows us to better meet our customers' shopping
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