Deckers’ Stock Price Has Outperformed Its Peer Group
Recent
Strong Earnings Results Demonstrate Successful Execution of
Transformation Strategy
Deckers Underscores Strength
and Experience of Board in Overseeing Transformation
Urges
Stockholders to Vote “FOR” All of Deckers’ Highly Qualified
Director Nominees on the WHITE Proxy Card TODAY
GOLETA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
Deckers Brands (NYSE: DECK), a global leader in designing, marketing and
distributing innovative footwear, apparel and accessories, today filed
an investor presentation in connection with Deckers’ upcoming 2017
Annual Meeting of Stockholders to be held on December 14, 2017.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here:
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20171115006422/en/
The presentation and other important information related to the annual
meeting can be found on Deckers’ website at www.votedeckers.com.
Highlights of the Deckers presentation include:
Deckers’ Board and management team are driving results:
-
Deckers’ stock performance has significantly outperformed its proxy
peers, with gains of approximately 143% over the past two years,
compared to approximately 85% for its proxy peers.1
-
Non-GAAP EBIT has significantly expanded and revenue has grown in
fiscal year 2018, even while turning off unprofitable streams (e.g.,
retail closures and wholesale account rationalization).
-
Deckers expects its strategic initiatives to lead to an increase of
380 basis points in operating profit margin from fiscal year 2017 to
fiscal year 2020.
Deckers’ Board and management team are executing on a marketplace
transformation focused on:
-
Delivering a premium brand experience to the consumer, elevating the
UGG brand to drive sales, implementing a multi-season and multi-brand
product strategy with a broader lifestyle offering, positioning all
brands for sustained growth, exploiting the Hoka One One brand, and
growing internationally.
-
Evolving the organization to address the changing marketplace by
merging office and brand groups to facilitate better collaboration,
creating greater efficiencies in our supply chain, and enhancing our
leadership team at the corporate and brand level.
-
Increasing operating profits by right-sizing the retail store fleet,
further reducing development time, optimizing material usage, and
leveraging previous investments and corporate best practices.
The Deckers Board, a unique composite of experienced and engaged
individuals, is committed to enhancing stockholder value and is actively
overseeing our transformation:
-
Deckers’ directors bring the right set of skills and experience to
define Deckers’ corporate strategy, with seven of nine directors being
current or former CEOs, CFOs, COOs or Chief Administrative Officers of
major public companies.
-
The Board undergoes a rigorous annual self-evaluation process to
ensure that it has the most effective composition for creating and
sustaining stockholder value.
-
The Board authorized the hiring of a third-party consultant to explore
cost savings opportunities in 2016, and recently completed a
comprehensive review of strategic alternatives. In October 2017, the
Board announced a $400 million stock repurchase program, and is
targeting $100 million of repurchases by the end of March 2018.
In contrast, Marcato’s proposals are not in the best interest of
Deckers’ stockholders and pose a serious threat to stockholder value.
For example, Marcato:
-
Nominated a slate of unqualified and unvetted director candidates,
most of which have never before served on a public board of directors
and many of whom have no C-level executive experience.
-
Proposes a drastic reduction in store count, which would require a
significant cash outlay and result in the loss of profitable stores.
These actions would run counter to Deckers’ omni-channel strategy,
which positions the company closer to the consumer and seeks to
elevate the brand experience.
-
Suggests that Deckers should divest its non-UGG brands. Marcato’s lack
of understanding of Deckers’ business model would return the company
to a more seasonal business that is entirely dependent on UGG, just as
non-UGG brand profits are improving.
-
Recommends a cost savings plan that offers no pathway for growth, and
that would require significant store closures. It also returns Deckers
to dependence on wholesalers and distributors whose own business model
is under significant pressure.
-
Supports a short-sighted and inherently risky increase in leverage,
which would make it more difficult to handle short-term headwinds to
the business.
Deckers’ Board of Directors unanimously recommends that
stockholders vote “FOR” ALL of Deckers’ nominees listed on
the WHITE proxy card.
PROTECT YOUR INVESTMENT!
PLEASE VOTE TODAY ON THE WHITE
PROXY CARD!
If you have questions, need assistance in
voting your shares, or wish to change a prior vote, please contact:
INNISFREE
M&A INCORPORATED
Stockholders Call Toll-Free:
(877)
750.0625 (from the U.S. and Canada)
or
(412) 232.3651
(from other locations)
Remember, please simply discard any Gold proxy card you may receive from
Marcato. Your Board does not endorse any of Marcato’s nominees and we
urge you to NOT submit any proxy using Marcato’s gold proxy card, even
as a protest vote. A withhold vote on Marcato’s Gold proxy card will
revoke any earlier proxy that you have submitted to Deckers.
___________________
1 Returns represent nominal percentage gain based on
comparing stock price on October 27, 2017 vs. October 27, 2016 and
October 27, 2015, respectively; peer group average represents arithmetic
mean. Deckers Proxy Peer Group includes The Buckle, Inc., Carter’s,
Inc., Chico's FAS, Inc., Columbia Sportswear Company, Crocs, Inc., DSW
Inc., Express, Inc., The Finish Line, Inc., Fossil Group, Inc., G-III
Apparel Group, Ltd., Guess?, Inc., Lululemon Athletica Inc., Oxford
Industries, Inc., RH, Skechers U.S.A., Inc., Steven Madden, Ltd., Under
Armour, Inc., and Wolverine World Wide, Inc.; does not include Kate
Spade & Company (acquired by Tapestry, Inc., formerly known as Coach,
Inc.) as it is no longer publicly traded.
About Deckers Brands
Deckers Brands is a global leader in designing, marketing and
distributing innovative footwear, apparel and accessories developed for
both everyday casual lifestyle use and high performance activities. The
Company’s portfolio of brands includes UGG®, Koolaburra®, HOKA ONE ONE®,
Teva® and Sanuk®. Deckers Brands products are sold in more than 50
countries and territories through select department and specialty
stores, Company-owned and operated retail stores, and select online
stores, including Company-owned websites. Deckers Brands has a 40-year
history of building niche footwear brands into lifestyle market leaders
attracting millions of loyal consumers globally. For more information,
please visit www.deckers.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains “forward-looking statements” within the
meaning of the federal securities laws, which statements are subject to
considerable risks and uncertainties. These forward-looking statements
are intended to qualify for the safe harbor from liability established
by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking
statements include all statements other than statements of historical
fact contained in this press release, including statements regarding
Deckers’ future strategies and cost-reduction initiatives. Deckers has
attempted to identify forward-looking statements by using words such as
“anticipate,” “believe,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,”
“plan,” “predict,” “project,” “should,” “will,” or “would,” and similar
expressions or the negative of these expressions.
Forward-looking statements represent management’s current expectations
and predictions about trends affecting Deckers’ business and industry
and are based on information available as of the time such statements
are made. Although Deckers does not make forward-looking statements
unless it believes that it has a reasonable basis for doing so, Deckers
cannot guarantee their accuracy or completeness. Forward-looking
statements involve numerous known and unknown risks, uncertainties and
other factors that may cause its actual results, performance or
achievements to be materially different from any future results,
performance or achievements predicted, assumed or implied by the
forward-looking statements. Some of the risks and uncertainties that may
cause Deckers’ actual results to materially differ from those expressed
or implied by these forward-looking statements are described in the
section entitled “Risk Factors” in Decker’s Annual Report on Form 10-K
for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2017, as well as in its other
filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Except as required by applicable law or the listing rules of the New
York Stock Exchange, Deckers expressly disclaims any intent or
obligation to update any forward-looking statements, or to update the
reasons that actual results could differ materially from those expressed
or implied by these forward-looking statements, whether to conform such
statements to actual results or changes in Deckers’ expectations, or as
a result of the availability of new information.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20171115006422/en/
Investors:
Deckers Brands
Steve Fasching, 805-967-7611
VP,
Strategy & Investor Relations
or
Innisfree M&A Incorporated
Arthur
B. Crozier, 212-750-5833
or
Media:
Joele Frank,
Wilkinson Brimmer Katcher
Eric Brielmann / Amy Feng, 415-869-3950
Source: Deckers Brands