Asics chalked up sales of 354,051 million yen for the fiscal year until the end of December, generating an operating income of ¥30,466 million (€225.5m-$256.1m) and net income of ¥22,285 million (€165.0m-$187.3m). The company did not provide direct comparisons with the previous year for the entire group, because it has changed its fiscal year.
The company's business was buoyed by growing interest in running and a rise in U.S. footwear sales. Asics continued to reinforce its recognition in this market with product launches as well as sponsorship of races such as the TCS New York City Marathon, as well as events in Paris, Stockholm and Kobe.
The Japanese group also invested in branded retail facilities, including the opening of a brand partner store in Manhattan and openings of own stores in Melbourne, Madrid, Hamburg and Rio de Janeiro. This lifted the number of Asics stores to more than 1,100, including 381 directly-managed stores and other partner stores. The group also started selling through its own online stores in Germany, France, Spain and Italy, on top of four other countries where it was already trading online.
Furthermore, Asics strove to support its apparel business by strengthening the function of global sourcing and development. It went ahead with the transfer of some production facilities from China to areas in Southeast Asia, in an effort to reduce costs.
The reported fiscal year combines different consolidation periods, with the performance of some entities covered for nine months until the end of December, and the others for the entire calendar year. The company thus does not provide any comparison for sales in Japan, which reached ¥82,575 million (€611.2m-$694.1m) for the reported period, while the group suffered an operating loss of ¥714 million in the region. Details on European sales are provided separately in the next item.
The group's turnover in the America area advanced by 25.8 percent to ¥118,879 million (€879.9m-$999.3m), amounting to an increase of 14.9 percent in constant currencies. This rise was driven by strong sales of running footwear. Asics' operating income for the area reached ¥10,935 million (€80.9m-$91.9m), which was an increase of 31.4 percent.
Oceania, South East and South Asia generated a sales increase of 21.8 percent to ¥18,559 million (€137.4m-$156.0m) for the year, due to the steady sales of running shoes in Australia, the start of sales activities by a subsidiary in Singapore and favorable exchange rates. The group's turnover in the region would have improved by 19.6 percent in constant currencies. However, operating income for the area advanced by just 1.9 percent to ¥3,245 million (€24.0m-$27.3m) and it even slipped by 0.3 percent in constant currencies, due to the impact of foreign exchange rates on purchasing costs.
When it comes to East Asia, sales in the region jumped by 32.5 percent to ¥31,494 million (€233.1m-$264.8m), and that was still a rise of 18.3 percent in constant currencies. Regional sales were buoyed by running footwear and Onitsuka Tiger shoes. Operating income for the region soared by 85.8 percent to ¥2,328 million (€17.2m-$19.6m), mostly owing to increased sales in China.
The group's other business division, which covers the Haglöfs outdoor brand, lifted its sales by 9.4 percent for the year to ¥11,822 million (€87.5m-$99.4m). This amounted to a rise of 5.8 percent in constant currencies. The segment made an operating loss of ¥821 million (€6.1m-$6.9m), attributed to non-recurring costs for business restructuring.
Asics predicts that its sales will reach about ¥423 billion (€3,132m-$3,556m) for the full year until the end of December 2015. Due to the shift in fiscal years, this may not be compared directly with the ¥354 billion reported above for the previous year. The same applies for a projected operating income of ¥33 billion (€244m-$277m) and net income of ¥21 billion (€155m-$177m) for the full current fiscal year. The company predicts that it will be supported by growing interest in sports. It wants to adjust to the increasingly global market situation, to attain further expansion in North America and to strengthen its business in Japan, based on its five-year strategic plan.
