Fewer promotions helped the makers of Coach handbags, Versace dresses and Ralph Lauren polos boost profitability in the holiday quarter, even as online gains were unable to make up for pandemic-driven sales declines, the Wall Street Journal reported. Faced with reduced demand as rising COVID-19 outbreaks forced shoppers to continue sequestering at home, many brands scaled back inventory, which helped them avoid the deep discounting of past holiday seasons. At Tapestry Inc., which owns the Coach and Kate Spade brands, net income rose 4% to $311 million in the three months to Dec. 26 driven by reduced promotions and higher average prices. While year-over-year profit declined at Ralph Lauren Corp. 2.51%, the average price of items sold in the period rose 19%—the third consecutive quarter of gains. Kohl’s Corp. , which is scheduled to report results in March, said yesterday that it reached better-than-expected earnings for the holiday quarter, reflecting less inventory and fewer promotions, even as revenue fell about 10%. And some retail chains are predicting that sales will snap back this year. Nordstrom Inc. said yesterday that it expects sales to rise about 25% in the fiscal year that started this month. For the recently completed holiday quarter, sales fell about 20%, the company said.
