Calida under pressure: brand chief Irem Aydin sets out to reorganise the label
Falling sales, a first-half loss and shares at around 14 francs: the Swiss underwear brand is betting on clear structures, better supply chains and more modern collections.
Symbolic image · Photo: Wegavision / Wikimedia Commons, CC0 (cropped and resized)
Swiss underwear and nightwear brand Calida is meant to grow again. As TextilWirtschaft reported on October 21, brand chief Irem Aydin is relying on clear structures, optimised supply chains, modern collections and a consistent visual language. Calida is the main brand of the listed Calida Group, which also owns French lingerie label Aubade.
The pressure is considerable. According to TextilWirtschaft, the brand's sales are declining and the company posted a net loss in the first half. It also faces a damages claim from Peugeot Frères Industrie, the buyer of former subsidiary Lafuma Mobilier. The shares, which traded at around 55 francs in February 2022, now stand at about 14 francs.
At the same time, the group is trying to keep investors on board. At the end of September, the board set a new payout ratio of 40 to 60 percent of adjusted group net income, up from 20 to 30 percent, FashionNetwork reported. A buyback of up to two percent of the shares has been running since October 2 and will end by June 2027 at the latest. Chairman and CEO Thomas Stöcklin said in German: "Mit der neuen Kapitalallokationsstrategie schaffen wir eine ausgewogene Balance" ("With the new capital allocation strategy, we are creating a sound balance").