Australian-born, global fashion brand Princess Polly is planning to double its store footprint in 2025 in the United States as sales across its wider group surge in the country.
In a trading update this week, Princess Polly’s parent company A.K.A Brands said the fashion brand will debut seven new stores in 2025, bringing the total number to 13.
In addition to its SoHo store opening in New York City later this month, the brand will open stores in Florida, California, Ohio, Pennsylvania and two more in New York.
Princess Polly already has six stores open along both coasts, with the first store opening occurring in Los Angeles in 2023.
The upcoming stores will feature similar in-store design elements from previous store openings, including selfie mirrors and “unique furniture installments”.
The majority of the new Princess Polly stores will be between around 4,000 to 5,000 square feet (~371 to 464 sqm).
“At Princess Polly, we’re constantly striving to connect with our customers and meet them where they’re shopping, and we see physical stores as a significant opportunity to continue expanding our hybrid retail presence,” Princess Polly co-CEO Eirin Bryett said.
“The success of our existing stores has fuelled our momentum and attracted new customers, and we can’t wait to introduce more shoppers to our in-store experience.”
Each store opening will be marked by grand opening events for customers featuring prizes, giveaways and special offers.
"We’ve received a very positive reception from our customers regarding the Princess Polly in-store experience, which has encouraged us to bring the brand to life in even more cities this year,” Bryett said.
“Community is at the heart of everything we do, and our stores are a critical touchpoint where we can create a space for customers to connect with Princess Polly on a new level and foster a deeper relationship with the brand they’ve come to love online.”
The scaling of Princess Polly’s retail arm across the US market comes after A.K.A. Brands reported a 21.6 per cent lift in net sales in the country for the final quarter of 2024.
A.K.A. Brands also owns and manages Australian-born Culture Kings and Petal & Pup.
Across all markets, including Australia, net sales for the group were up by 6.8 per cent to US$159 million (~A$251 million). In Australia, group sales were down by 9.6 per cent to US$57.2 million, with rest of world down 13.5 per cent to US$5.6 million.
For the full year to December 31, group sales were up 5.2 per cent to US$574 million, with Australian sales down 11.1 per cent and US sales up 16.9 per cent.
Despite the overall sales lift, A.K.A. Brands reported a group net loss of US$9.4 million for the quarter and US$26 million for the full year.
Meanwhile, the group’s adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) was US$6.2 million for the quarter and US$23.3 million for the full year, respectively representing 3.9 per cent and 4.1 per cent of net sales.
“2024 marked a pivotal year for A.K.A. Brands. We achieved 5 per cent net sales growth, fueled by impressive mid-teens net sales growth in our U.S. business, and we delivered over 150 basis points of adjusted EBITDA expansion year-over-year – all ahead of our expectations,” CEO Ciaran Long said.
“Our strong financial results underscore the significant progress we are making against our strategic priorities and further illustrate the power of our brands, our increased operational discipline and our improved financial foundation. I want to thank our global team whose consistent focus on the customer and product innovation is the driving force behind our success.”
Looking to 2025, Long said the team will remain focused on expanding its customer base, building upon omnichannel expansion and brand awareness efforts, and further improving operating and financial discipline.
This includes pushing Princess Polly and its sister brand Petal & Pup into Nordstroms. As for Culture Kings, the group reported that the brand continues to experience growth in the US, driven by “standout performance” from its in-house brands, including Loiter, mnml and Carre, which are reportedly generating strong revenue growth and improved gross margins since transitioning to the test and repeat merchandising approach.
“With seven new Princess Polly store openings, including its first location in New York City, and expanding Princess Polly and Petal & Pup’s Nordstrom partnership to all locations, we’re broadening our reach with new customers and deepening our relationship with our existing ones,” Long said.
“While still early in our efforts, we remain confident in our ability to deliver sustained, profitable growth over the long-term and believe we are just getting started.”