Deckers Disrupts Sneaker Segment as Uggs Owner Turns Hoka Into $1B Brand

The highly competitive global sneaker wars have a new contestant to look out for after Deckers said its Hoka line of athletic shoes has grown into a $1 billion brand that’s vying alongside other upstarts to take on struggling stalwarts Nike and Adidas.

According to a press release and conference call comments made Thursday (July 28), Deckers pointed to Hoka’s 55% sales growth for the three months ending June 30 as proof of the brands success, as well as its own strategy to diversify the seasonality of its leading Uggs line of shoes.

“Fiscal year 2023 is off to a solid start, with Hoka driving strong growth, propelling the brand to eclipse the billion-dollar milestone over the trailing 12-month period,” President and Chief Executive Officer Dave Powers said in the press release. “The HOKA brand’s speed to achieve this feat is exciting, especially as the brand’s increasing penetration to our portfolio benefits Deckers’ overall quarterly financial and operational performance.”

For Q1, Deckers’ overall net sales were up 21.8% year over year to $614.5 million, with wholesale net sales up 24.7% to $429.4 million and direct-to-consumer net sales rising 15.4% from the same time one year earlier to $185.1 million. Domestic net sales were up 14.4% year over year to $384.5 million, while international net sales grew 36.4% to $229.9 million.

Hoka net sales were up 54.9% year over year to $330 million in Q1, while Ugg sales were down 2.4% in the same period to $207.9 million, Teva net sales inched up 2.0% to $59.6 million and Sanuk net sales dipped 5.9% to $14.2 million. Deckers’ other brands, primarily Koolaburra, saw a 45.3% net sales drop year over year to $2.7 million.

Related: Skechers Says Growing Consumer Demand for ‘Affordable Comfort’ Drives Record Results

Earlier this week, Skechers, the world’s third-largest athletic footwear company, said strong consumer demand for affordable comfort drove record quarterly sales results at a time when both of its larger rivals are struggling.

Nike is increasingly relying on partnerships and direct to consumer sales to turn around a rare slump, while Adidas adjusted its financial outlook for the year after struggling to meet its goals in its most recent quarterly report.

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