Swiss sportswear brand On has credited its “premium, differentiated positioning” for delivering a “record quarter” for net sales.
Highlighting the role of its “elevated product offering” across the performance and lifestyle categories, On grew net sales 32% year-on-year to CHF 749.2m (£687m) over the three months to 30 June. For the six months ending 30 June, net sales increased by 37.2% to CHF 1,475.8m (£1.35bn).
The brand credited the “continued strength” in its direct-to-consumer strategy, which grew in share of sales to a “new second quarter high of 41.1%”.
In a call with investors yesterday (12 August), co-founder David Allemann said the brand’s “premium positioning” grew gross profit margin to 61.5%, adding that the product portfolio and channel mix has strengthened On’s global footprint. His aim is for On to become “the most premium global sportswear brand”.
Swiss sportswear brand On has credited its “premium, differentiated positioning” for delivering a “record quarter” for net sales.
Highlighting the role of its “elevated product offering” across the performance and lifestyle categories, On grew net sales 32% year-on-year to CHF 749.2m (£687m) over the three months to 30 June. For the six months ending 30 June, net sales increased by 37.2% to CHF 1,475.8m (£1.35bn).
The brand credited the “continued strength” in its direct-to-consumer strategy, which grew in share of sales to a “new second quarter high of 41.1%”.
In a call with investors yesterday (12 August), co-founder David Allemann said the brand’s “premium positioning” grew gross profit margin to 61.5%, adding that the product portfolio and channel mix has strengthened On’s global footprint. His aim is for On to become “the most premium global sportswear brand”.
The company, which is halfway into a three-year strategic plan, credited its performance, recent product launches in running, tennis and trail, and expansion in the Asia-Pacific region for driving growth. The intention going forward is to expand On’s “premium global growth footprint”.
Don’t expect us to swim in a sea of sameness. We’re going to do it highly elevated as a premium brand and very distinctively.
David Allemann, On
Net sales in EMEA increased by 42.9% to CHF 197.8m (£181.3m), rose 16.8% to CHF 432.3m (£396.4m) in the Americas and were up 101.3% to CHF 119.2m (£109.3m) in Asia-Pacific over the three months to 30 June.
For the six month period, EMEA net sales rose 38.5% to CHF 366.4m (£336m), 24.3% to CHF 869.7m (£797.6m) in the Americas and 114.8% to CHF 239.7m (£219.8m) across Asia-Pacific.
The brand now has 54 stores worldwide, which Allemann described as “spatial experiences where product, brand, community and storytelling come together”. Yet while growth is a key priority, he wants to ensure On remains a “global brand with local sensibility”.
Premium push
The company started in running, but now serves tennis and other sectors, with a vision of being “the most premium holistic sportswear brand”, according to Allemann.
Partnerships with fashion house Loewe, actress Zendaya and performer FKA twigs were also credited by the co-founder as helping the brand position itself in both the lifestyle and premium markets.
“While On is fundamentally a sports brand, the cultural shift towards sport as the new uniform and fashion means we’re also a lifestyle brand, unlocking a much larger addressable market,” said Allemann
He claimed On’s brand strength is now “over-indexing” with Gen Z consumers and described the company as being at a “tipping point” after “converting broad communities” of repeat buyers.
Our brand record shows we are the only brand growing our connection with both performance and lifestyle simultaneously, a rare position to be in.
Martin Hoffmann, On
CEO and CFO Martin Hoffman cited “brand momentum across communities” as a key strength and claimed On grew overall brand awareness “faster than any other brand in our category” according to its proprietary brand tracker. The brand tracker also noted a “significant increase” in On’s connection with runners, building its performance credibility.
“Our brand record shows we are the only brand growing our connection with both performance and lifestyle simultaneously, a rare position to be in that speaks to the strength and versatility of the own brand,” said Hoffman.
“This is also evident in our outsized growth with the 18-to-34-year-old segment. The momentum in our products comes to life through our multichannel distribution strategy,” he added.
Claiming On enters the second half of the year with “exceptional brand momentum”, Hoffman explained the brand plans to grow its apparel business through marketing investment and brand building efforts.
Allemann cited influencer activations and pop-ups at Selfridges as helping to build brand momentum.
“Don’t expect us to swim in a sea of sameness. We’re going to do it highly elevated as a premium brand and very distinctively,” Allemann stated.
The brand hopes to maintain momentum with the launch of the Cloudboom Max “super shoe” next week, with a view to “strategically increasing” brand exposure in the run-up to the 2028 LA Olympics.
