Anthropologie capped a positive 2009 with a fantastic holiday season. According to reports released yesterday, Urban Outfitters’ total sales were $452 million for November and December 2009. Split among their brands, same store sales were up 1% at Urban Outfitters, 8% at Free People and 10% at Anthropologie. While these numbers are compared against weak numbers from 2008 it still puts Urban Outfitters more than 3 percentage points up against the index (5% up comparable same-store vs. 1.8% industry-wide) and sets the tone for further positive movement in 2010.
I’m trying to think of what other developments could have possibly helped spread the good word about Anthro. I hear those blog things are pretty popular…
Further reading: Philly.com; Economic Times
10% increase for same store sales is pretty good given the economic times. I definitely have been spending more at Anthro since reading your blog 🙂
Wow, good times for Urban Outfitters, that's pretty impressive.And yes, I'm going to have to say that us bloggers contributed a little bit 😉 Hell, *I* spent more in the last year just *writing* my blog (even though it was meant to inspire the opposite…oops!).
Ditto on the above. Catalogs are beautiful to look at but nothing can compare to real life reviews by real people wearing the clothing in their everyday life. I have made wonderful purchases(a lot of them) because of bloggers reviews and postings.
unfortunately for the stock though, wall street analysts were expecting better numbers for the company as a whole, so investors viewed the results as disappointing
Hmm interesting Anon. I was waiting for a stock blog to give their take but didn't see anything this morning so I figured they were waiting for complete Q4 results. I imagine the 1% gain at Urban Outfitters wasn't thrilling but that's in line with the cutdown on discretionary income with their target audience (teens/college kids).
hey roxy! i second your notion that blogs contribute to the rise in anthro sales. before i discovered your blog, i rarely ever shopped there, and now it is taking over my love for j. crew! 🙂
I think Anthro has done a better job of offering items at a wider range of price points in the last six months. But I bet the blog attention has helped too! I know that reading them gets me on the site more often.
I think another big thing in Anthro's favor is the quality of their clothing. Not that every single thing they carry is excellent quality. But in my (limited) experience, most of the items are well-made. And sadly, one can't say that about most chain stores these days. I hope they never change that. My city got a Banana in 1995 and I can't believe how much I have seen them go down hill since then.
what help Anthro stand out among the sea of fashion is their store displays and their dreaming and high quality clothes. They just have a few exceptional styles in each catalog and monthly release, but each and every single one of them hits the deepest desires of their follower, me. I absolutely have no need for another dress, sweater, blouse, shoes,china, duvet, etc. Since I discover Anthro in early 2008, I replace all of my wardrope to Anthro products. I keep buying their stuff because it is about my desires and my looks. For example, I have been haunted by the Tawny Garden dress for its docile and demure look, and the Lantern Glow dress for its modern Victoria yet mysterious look. Every single month, I was hit with a few of their one-of-the-kind item like: Larkspur dress, solar star blouse, and on-the-wing blouse, ect. Every single month, I promise myself to be good to my bank account and every single month, I break my promises promptly when they have the sale. Shopping at Anthro, for me, is not shopping for a staple good cotton shirt or dress, it is about the look and how I want to present myself to the world. Some day, I want to communicate to the world that I am a luxurious, pampered, and yet subtle gals, so I dress in silk (jonquil sky dress by anna sui for Anthr in Nov. 08 catalog). Some day, I want to be a fun, carefree and young-looking gal, I have a crop pants and jahoda corset top (Feb. 09). It is all about the image that I am buying from Anthro to present who I am. And because it is my image, it lasts with me until I am aging. I want good quality. I want silk dresses and blouses. I want good thick cotton. I want cashmere and wool sweaters/ coats. I will not accept anything less. A cotton dress will not last more than 1 year or 2. When a dress is damaged, hole, thin, I lost my look. It is a horrible feeling because I feel I lost a bit of myself.The only thing I think they will do wrong is to use polyester, rayon, or any other synthetic materials to substitute for your silk or good quality cotton. Why does Anthro. company want to compete with JCPenney? If I want polyester, I go to other places, why do you spend money at Anthro for rayon or polyester?A good example is the Longing-for-yellow dress. It is a very beautiful dress. I got compliments at the dressing room from other strangers/customers. However, at the end, I put it back on the rack. It is 100% polyester. It is the same for the Verite dress. On the website, it says cotton, but on the dress label, it is 100% polyester. I feel like I am wearing plastic. It is a waste of the beautiful dresses. These are very popular dresses. For me, I want more. I want wool Verite or silk longing-for-yellow. They are beautiful dresses and they deserve appropriate materials to match with their calibers. Sorry about the rant on your blog.
I think you and other great anthro bloggers (like Kim) had a little to do with the increase in sales my dear. I know I was encouraged to buy 3 items that you featured.
Love Anthro, hate Urban Outfitters. I cringe when I take my 13 and 14 year old daughters in UO – cute clothes but the book and novelty tables make it seem like I'm taking them into an "adult only" story. Not classy. We hang out at Anthro. Oh yeah, UO catalog models also verge on looking like child p$rn models. Awful stuff!!
Kudos to you, Kim, and the other Anthro bloggers–I know that since I discovered the world of Anthro blogs 2 months ago, I *definitely* have spent more money there. Not only updates on sales items have been useful, but y'all's tips on styling have helped to elevate my outfits. Before I'd be like, "Dress, check. Shoes, check. Okay, outfit done." Now I consider how cardigan would add another visually interesting layer and/or if a belt would pick up a color. Even the hubby has been appreciative on my new take on fashion!Also, I agree with the 2nd anon. poster, Anthro is very savvy at appealing to shoppers' desires. I totally buy in to their "polished bohemian" aesthetic. Literally & metaphorically!
I definitely feel that the bloggers help contribute to the growth in sales. Every store cannot possibly carry every single item and the bloggers trying on the items and showing how real women, not models look wearing the items is such a wonderful thing and I have looked at stuff I wouldn't have looked at twice and bought because of bloggers.Keep up the good work!
My Anthro spending took two big jumps this year. First, when Anthro's website started offering customer reviews, my obsessive nature led me to want to try on a lot more items in store so that I could review them on their website. This led me to purchase things that I never would have thought of buying. Second, I discovered this wonderful blog. Seeing Roxy's pictures of a "real" person (no offense, models, but I'm not a size 0!) wearing Anthro clothing led me to take more chances with online purchases. This blog has also led me to buy a lot more sale items because I get caught up in the excitement.
The blogs have really helped in me buying more Anthro stuff. It's nice that you try the clothes and we have similar measurements and body shape so it gives me a good reference point. Also, I don't have an Anthro near me so I buy online a lot. Before your blog the only thing I had bought at Anthro was a quilt.