HELSINKI (BRAIN) — Amer Sports Corporation is reporting that its cycling sales — comprising business by its Mavic and Enve brands — were down 5 percent in the January through March period, compared to the same period last year.
The bike businesses recorded sales of 37.7 million euros ($40.9 million) in the period, down from 39.7 million euros last year. In local currencies, sales were down 6 percent.
In a press release Amer, which plans a conference call with investors later Thursday, said, "The wholesale market, especially in the U.S., continued to be challenging with high trade inventories, impacting particularly footwear and cycling."
In the release, Heikki Takala, Amer's president and CEO, said the company's cycling and sports instruments division "did not deliver target performance." However, he said, "we continued to strengthen our new product development with exciting initiatives in the pipeline."
Overall, Amer's net sales were up 4 percent in the quarter to 661.6 million euros. Gross margin was down slightly to 45.3 percent, attributed to less favorable hedges against the dollar.
Amer's cycling business is part of its outdoor segment, which grew 6 percent in the quarter, with most of the growth coming in sales of winter sports equipment (up 20 percent). The sports instruments business, through Amer's Suunto brand, slumped 20 percent in the period.
