Vans has brand heat, but after years of right sizing, it appears to remain in a show-me scenario with investors.
So, with all the hoopla around the brand, particularly with the expanded pipeline that includes updated versions of Authentic, slip-on and Old Skool, why are revenue down 9 percent in the first quarter and projected for another 9 percent decline in the second quarter?
The answer, apparently, lies with its wholesale accounts.
When VF hosted its first quarter earnings conference call Wednesday, president and chief executive officer Bracken Darrell reminded investors that he had noted a few quarters ago that the business would turn around first in direct-to-consumer (DTC) and then wholesale, with the brand focusing on its Americas operation. “And that’s exactly what continues to happen,” he told investors.
The reason for DTC trends coming in ahead of wholesale first is because “we have more flexibility in introducing new products into our own DTC channels than we do in wholesale, [which] takes more time. E-comm is where we’re starting to see accelerated growth,” Darrell explained.
Darrell also noted “many green shoots in the last few months,” including how Vans has “more and more new products that are generating energy, excitement, engagement and sell-out, complete sell-out” and that the focus on ” innovation is driving consumer demand.” In addition, the product team is working on new silhouettes, such as loafers.
The CEO noted that Vans’ fleet of stores, mostly focused on the U.S. market, has “almost 60 percent of our comp store [base] now flat to growing in Q1,” and he said that’s going to change between the first and second halves of Fiscal ’27 at Vans.
And while he didn’t disclose much about the wholesale order books, Darrell did say that “discussions we’re having with our wholesale partners around the world indicate that we’re going to have a strong turn in wholesale in the back half.” He’s also anticipating that wholesale in general will be “a lot better around the world.” And with wholesale picking up, revenue for Vans for the second half is projected at “down 2 percent or better versus last year.”
Telsey Advisory Group’s (TAG) chief investment officer Dana Telsey has a “market perform” rating on shares of VF, the equivalent of a “hold” or “neutral” on the stock. In an investment meeting TAG had with executives at VF, she said they pointed to three key factors underpinning the firm’s outlook on Vans: “continued momentum in North America direct-to-consumer, an anticipated improvement in wholesale trands, and increasing consumer engagement with refreshed product assortments.”
For wholesale accounts, VF acknowledged that sell-in remained pressured in the first half — the company is at the start of its second quarter period — as retail partners work through inventory but that trends have improved and that has translated into stronger order patterns entering the second half. Product innovation was cited as an important catalyst, with the executives noting encouraging consumer responses, she said. Telsey also noted that the first quarter decline was slightly below internal expectations due in part to wholesale timing and a weaker performance from a subset of doors within Vans’ store fleet.
BTIG’s consumer retail and lifestyle brands analyst Janine Stichter has a “Buy” rating on shares of VF. She said that Vans’ reported results don’t tell the full story.
“While we understand investors’ growing frustration with the pace of progress at Vans, we believe the turnaround is progressing on plan, and have confidence in the wholesale improvement planned for [the second half],” Stichter said. “We note the typical lag between DTC and wholesale given management’s ability to more immediately and directly impact DTC product and marketing, and see opportunity for wholesale to follow a similar upward trajectory as assortments are refreshed to better reflect top-trending styles.”
Stichter also noted that wholesale is expected to benefit in “holiday/spring from retailers reassorting toward the new, more differentiated products that are selling through strongly, but have lacked broad distribution.” And she said that her team has noted signs of strength in key styles, including Authentic, Slip-ons and Old Skool, where performance achieved “robust sell-throughs in new iterations.”
For now, Vans will need to ensure the brand continues to garner brand heat to stay topmost in consumers’ minds.
In L.E.K. Consulting’s 2026 U.S. Footwear, Apparel and Accessories Brand Heat Index, released in March, Vans place fourth among the Top 10 brands for men’s casual footwear,
And in April, Needham analyst Tom Nikic said Vans was picking up some “high heat” in the sneaker resale market, helped in part by the March release of Vans’ classic Old Skool shoe, this time refreshed with pearl decorations. He said that the shoe “seems to have sold through quickly in larger quantities when it was released at Vans’ DTC channel and also at large retailers that include Foot Locker.
During Wednesday VF earnings conference call, Darrell also spoke about brand heat, and how luxury is picking up on some of Vans’ key styles. Among those styles were the Authentic, the slip-on and skate-inspired.
“This is a moment where luxury is going into a lot of our silhouettes, an increasing number of our silhouettes, and that is not only flattering, but it’s very good for the brand and brand heat,” Darrell said. Taking advantage of the luxury interest has meant more of an emphasis on premium styles, collaborations and delivering growth, which he said will translate to expansion of profitability. But he also told investors that how to accelerate and maximize that brand heat is a “learning curve we’re on right now to get better and better at that.”
