Sally Beauty says reports sales down but recovery is taking place, reveals new acquisitions

Sally Beauty Holdings said on Tuesday net sales for the fourth quarter fell 4.3% to $921 million, capping of a year which saw annual sales dip 2.3% at the U.S. beauty retailer.

The Denton, Texas-based company said annual sales totalled $3.73 billion, thanks to its store optimisation plan, helping boost comparable sales, which increased 1.4% for the 12 months ending September 30, while fourth-quarter comparables were down 1.6%.

For the year, net earnings were flat at $184.6 million.

“We are pleased to report full year financial results in line with the expectations we laid out at the beginning of fiscal 2023,” said Denise Paulonis, president and chief executive officer.

“We drove a comparable sales gain, maintained healthy gross margins and generated strong cash flow from operations against a rapidly shifting backdrop. We also advanced our consumer-centric strategies during the year, launching new concepts and bringing new services to the market, while delivering unparalleled product innovation to both our Sally and BSG customers.”

Coinciding with the earnings update, Sally Beauty said its Beauty Systems Group in September acquired “certain assets” from Goldwell of New York, which includes five stores, as well as full-service sales and distribution rights for all sales channels of Goldwell, Deva Curl and other key brands in the upstate New York territory, and 28 CosmoProf stores in the same territory. The transaction also included full-service and e-commerce distribution rights for Amika hair care.

The deal is expected to result “in an incremental sales benefit” of approximately 1% to the company’s Beauty Systems Group segment in fiscal 2024.