Dive Brief:
- HanesBrands CEO Steve Bratspies will step down from the top position by the end of the year, or when a successor is named, according to a press release Thursday. He will also leave his role on the board of directors.
- The company has begun its search for a successor and retained executive search firm Spencer Stuart.
- Bratspies, who was CEO for five years, will stay with the company in an advisory role after a new leader is named, according to the release.
Dive Insight:
HanesBrands announced Bratspies’ departure on the same day it reported fourth-quarter and full-year 2024 results, which the company said were better than expected.
In Q4, HanesBrands saw its net sales increase 4.5% to $888 million. For the full year, HanesBrands reported net sales of $3.5 billion, marking a 3.6% decrease year over year.
HanesBrands’ U.S. business saw a 3% growth year over year in Q4, primarily driven by its innerwear segment. Since selling Champion to Authentic Brands Group last year, HanesBrands has put most of its focus into its innerwear business, and has been making strides to attract younger consumers with its products. HanesBrands international sales increased 2% in the quarter.
As part of the Champion sale agreement, HanesBrands continued to operate the brand in Japan through a licensing agreement, but in Q4, the company told Authentic it would exit the license early. The company marked Champion Japan as discontinued operations in Q4.
Prior to its sale, Champion made up the bulk of the company’s activewear division, a segment that led to consistent revenue declines at the company. As HanesBrands pivots its focus and heads toward “the next leg of the Company’s journey,” Bill Simon, chairman of the board, said now was the right time to search for the next CEO.
In the release about the CEO succession, Simon credited Bratspies with making HanesBrands a “new and better company.”
“Steve led HanesBrands through a turbulent period in our industry, overhauling the Company’s operating model, completing the sale of the Champion business and positioning HanesBrands as a global powerhouse in basics and innerwear,” Simon said. “Under Steve’s leadership, the Company has narrowed its focus and is now on track to deliver even stronger performance and increased shareholder returns in the coming years.”
Bratspies said that over the last five years HanesBrands became a stronger and more simplified business.
“HanesBrands today is a more consumer-centric global operating company better prepared and strategically positioned to leverage our brands, innovation, marketing, talent, and supply chain capabilities around the world,” Bratspies said in the release. “...I am proud of the actions we have taken, what this organization has achieved together, and how HanesBrands is ready for the future.”
Also Thursday, HanesBrands set first-quarter and full-year 2025 guidance. It expects Q1 net sales to be about $750 million, a 1% year-over-year increase. For 2025, it expects net sales of between $3.47 billion and $3.52 billion, flat to the prior year.
