“We delivered a strong finish to the year with fourth quarter sales and gross margins exceeding expectations and operating income up meaningfully from the prior year period. Our performance was led by Journeys as the strategic growth initiatives we’ve implemented over the past 12 months fueled strong full-priced selling and mid-teens comp growth. At the same time, sales trends at Schuh and Johnston & Murphy further improved with fourth quarter comps for both businesses reaching the highest level of the year”, said Mimi E. Vaughn, Genesco’s Board Chair, President and Chief Executive Officer.

Fourth Quarter Results

In the three months that ended on the 1^st of February, the company’s net sales amounted to 746 million US dollars, reflecting an increase of 1%, on a comparable basis to the same period of last fiscal year. This increase, partially offset by the 53-week calendar shift and net store closures, was driven by a 10% increase in comparable sales, an 18% increase in e-commerce and a 6% increase in same-store sales.

From a brand perspective, while Journeys' net sales increased by 5% and Schuh’s net sales increased by 3%, Johnston & Murphy’s net sales decreased by 6% and Genesco Brands’ net sales decreased by 12% in the fourth quarter, as compared to the same period in the prior year.

In the fourth quarter of fiscal 2025, Genesco’s gross margin improved by 60 basis points to 46.9% from 46.3% in the prior year quarter, mainly due to lower markdowns at Journeys and improved margins at Genesco Brands and Johnston & Murphy, partially offset by increased promotional activity at Schuh.

Selling and administrative expenses in the fourth quarter decreased to 40.5% from 41.1%, driven by lower occupancy costs, selling salaries, and other cost-saving measures, partially offset by higher marketing and incentive compensation expenses.

The company’s fourth quarter GAAP operating income was 46.1 million US dollars, as compared to 37.3 million US dollars in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2024. Genesco also reported fourth quarter GAAP earnings from continuing operations of 33.6 million US dollars, as compared to 20.3 million US dollars in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2024.

Full Year Results

In fiscal year 2025, the retailer’s net sales were flat at 2.3 billion US dollars, on a comparable basis to the previous fiscal year, reflecting an increase in comparable e-commerce sales offset by 63 net store closures, the negative impact of the extra week in fiscal 2024 and lower wholesale sales.

Genesco reported a full year GAAP operating income of 13.9 million US dollars, as compared to an operating loss of 13.5 million US dollars in fiscal 2025, and a GAAP loss from continuing operations of 19.5 million US dollars, as compared to 23.6 million US dollars in fiscal 2025.

Outlook

For the full year, the company expects total sales to be flat to up 1%, as compared to the prior year, including a negative currency impact of approximately 14 million US dollars and a store closure impact of approximately 30 million US dollars.