Skechers earnings up 67% in 2015

Manhattan Beach, California — Skechers, the US based-footwear company, saw earnings rise 67% to $333.5m  in 2015 compared to $209m in 2014, according to a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

The filing shows that sales rose by $770m to $3.147bn. Skechers said that the growth in sales was "broad based across our domestic wholesale, international wholesale and retail segments." This was driven by new products with increased margins, the company said adding, "we became the second largest footwear brand in the US, the number one walking brand and number one work brand."

During 2016 the firm said it will continue to invest in lifestyle and performance product lines and will expand into new categories.

In 2015 the firm said: "Our products are produced by independent contract manufacturers located primarily in China and Vietnam. We do not own or operate any manufacturing facilities. We believe that the use of independent manufacturers substantially increases our production flexibility and capacity, while reducing capital expenditures and avoiding the costs of managing a large production workforce.

"When possible, we seek to use manufacturers that have previously produced our footwear, which we believe enhances continuity and quality while controlling production costs. We source product for styles that account for a significant percentage of our net sales from at least five different manufacturers. During 2015, five of our contract manufacturers accounted for approximately 56.5% of total purchases.

"One manufacturer accounted for 31.5% and another accounted for 9.1% of our total purchases. To date, we have not experienced difficulty in obtaining manufacturing services or with the availability of raw materials."

The company has quality control operations in China and Vietnam and guarantees not to use forced labour under US definitons and child labour under local definitions in the countries where it operates. The firm has a number of brand ambassadors for different segments including Ringo Starr.