4 Takeaways From Citi's Back-To-School Shoe Survey

Citi’s 2016 Back-to-School Footwear Survey indicated the Athletic Specialty category outperforming the broader industry trends, analyst Kate McShane said in a report. He added that the survey results suggested a “slightly stronger BTS season y/y.”

4 Drivers Of BTS Season

The survey included 79 US footwear retailers and focused on this year's back-to-school selling season. McShane mentioned that the survey indicated the BTS season would likely be slightly stronger y/y, driven by:

1. Multiple brand platforms working, including Nike basketball & lifestyle, adidas, Puma, and Vans
2. Multiple categories working, with growth in running, basketball, and casual athletic
3. Footwear traffic outpacing broader US mall trends, possibly driven by excitement around the Olympics
4. A more positive view of customer spending, with a majority citing a y/y increase in spend

“Footwear promotions appeared roughly flat (58% of retailers) to higher y/y (34%), consistent with the broader inventory pressures,” the analyst wrote. He added that Foot Locker, Inc. FL remained Citi’s top-pick in the footwear retail space, since the company seemed well positioned to “continue getting the top allocation of premium branded product & managing well through industry headwinds, with clean inventories & branded shop-in-shops.”

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