Allbirds CEO Says New Shoe Launches Will Spark Growth by End of Year
After a year focused on its core turnaround strategy, Allbirds is looking to newness to drive growth in 2025.
On the company’s fourth quarter earnings call on Tuesday, Allbirds chief executive officer Joe Vernachio told analysts that it’s an “exciting time” at the company. The CEO noted that its development center in Vietnam is set to deliver new concepts, materials and prototypes in the back half of 2025 and into 2026.
“Our fall ’25 lineup will bring a much broader range of products and colors than the year before, and we can’t wait to get them on people’s feet,” Vernachio said.
Among the new launches is a “refreshed lineup” of core products headlined by an updated Runner, the brand’s leading franchise. The CEO said that at the heart of this refresh is Allbirds’ signature gray heather wool, which Vernachio mentioned is bought in “high volume” by its loyal customers.
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Shortly after the Runner launch, Allbirds is then set to introduce a new court-inspired shoe designed in more than 18 colors, followed by the roll out of the company’s first fully waterproof collection alongside a cozy slip-on line geared towards holiday gifting.
Along with these new product launches, Vernachio added that the company will debut a redesigned website in the back half of this year as well as prototyping an update to its in-store presentation at its San Francisco location.
“The new site will more effectively showcase our updated brand language and product architecture, making it easier to navigate and more inspiring to shop,” the CEO added. “We’ll be improving landing and product pages to highlight key features while also offering styling inspiration, something our customers have been asking for. With one-step checkout, faster load times and a major content upgrade, the experience is being designed to feel frictionless from start to finish. We expect these improvements to drive a meaningful increase in conversion.”
As for the in-store prototyping, Vernachio noted it should be finalized by the end of the first quarter and will start to roll out to select locations throughout the year.
“As our three key focus areas of product, marketing and experience come to life, the changes we have made will be impossible to miss,” Vernachio said. “Those who already know Allbirds will see a sharper, more focused brand. And for those discovering us for the first time, they’ll find a modern lifestyle footwear brand that connects on a rational, emotional and cultural level. I have tremendous confidence in our team to execute our plan and take the bold actions needed to claim our position in the market.”
This strategy comes as the San Francisco-based company reported that net revenue in the fourth quarter of 2024 decreased 22.4 percent to $55.9 million compared to $72.0 million in the same period last year. For the full fiscal year 2024, Allbirds saw net revenues fall 25.3 percent to $189.8 million compared to $254.1 million in 2023.
Earnings for Q4 and the year were in line with Allbirds’ expectations. For the fourth quarter, the company was expecting net revenue between $53 million and $59 million and for the full year, Allbirds was aiming for net revenues of between $187 million to $193 million.
Looking ahead, Allbirds is expecting net revenue for the full fiscal year of 2025 between $175 million to $195 million. Net revenue in the first quarter of 2025 is expected to be between $28 million to $33 million.
