JJill Inc Q1 2024 Earnings Call Transcript

The following is excerpted from the question-and-answer section of the transcript.

Question: Ryan Meyers - Lake Street Capital Markets, LLC - Analyst : Hey, good morning, guys. Thank you for taking my questions. First one from me, just wondering if you can maybe talk a little bit about what you've seen traffic trends look like, and maybe how you expect that to trend throughout the rest of this year.

Question: Ryan Meyers - Lake Street Capital Markets, LLC - Analyst : Okay got it. But that being said, it seems like your core customer is more aware of the demand environment and seems like demand continues to be, let's just say, stronger now than it was at the beginning of the year. Is that a right way to think about it? REFINITIV STREETEVENTS | www.refinitiv.com | Contact Us consent of Refinitiv. 'Refinitiv' and the Refinitiv logo are registered trademarks of Refinitiv and its affiliated companies. JUNE 07, 2024 / 12:00PM, JILL.N - Q1 2024 JJill Inc Earnings Call

Question: Ryan Meyers - Lake Street Capital Markets, LLC - Analyst : Okay, got it. And then just one more for me. As you guys have dialed into the marketing a little bit more, have you seen this flow through in any new to brand customers? Or maybe, comment on how you guys have seen that trend.

Question: Ryan Meyers - Lake Street Capital Markets, LLC - Analyst : Got it. Thank you for taking my questions.

Question: Dana Telsey - Telsey Advisory Group LLC - Analyst : Hi, good morning, everyone and nice to see the progress. As you think about the store sales which had a significant uptick in the first quarter from the fourth quarter, was it traffic? Was it all regions? Was it any specific categories? And then on the margins with the gross margin up certainly more than expected. And Mark you had mentioned that better margins even on some of the markdowns, any change in process of what you're doing there and driving that better margin even on markdown merchandise? And lastly, with the Red Sea impact on inventory levels, how much of an increase do you see inventory at the end of Q2? And are there any changes you're making going forward given the issues in the Red Sea? Thank you.

Question: Dana Telsey - Telsey Advisory Group LLC - Analyst : Thank you.

Question: Dylan Carden - William Blair - Analyst : Okay, thanks. Yeah, just -- kind of curious. I know it's small, but the new stores that you've targeted, can you speak to how those might compare to your existing fleet regionally, sort of target demographic. And then more broadly, this idea that you're the best kept secret, how do you penetrate deeper into your core customer and how -- maybe even if you have a sense of it, how that's changed as far as awareness of that group through time? Thanks.

Question: Dylan Carden - William Blair - Analyst : Yeah. Thank you very much, Claire.

Question: Jonna Kim - TD Cowen - Analyst : Thank you for taking my question. Could you just talk about some initiatives you are doing to drive high or full-price selling given the macro still remains volatile in your assumptions for the remainder of the year. And also, just on the customer acquisition front, you mentioned new customers being more at the younger end of your target age group. What are some initiatives you are doing to acquire more younger consumers to your base? Thank you.

Question: Jonna Kim - TD Cowen - Analyst : Got it. Thank you very much.

Question: Marni Shapiro - The Retail Tracker - Analyst : Thanks. Hey guys, congratulations. The stores have looked really beautiful. It sounds like the business is in a different place right now from listening to you guys that you're very comfortable with bringing customers in with the product, with markdowns. It feels like the base of the business is very solid. And this is what's fueling your ability to invest in whether it's technology, marketing, and everything. I'm curious internally, is the team feeling that? Did it suddenly all just gel because even in your stores, it feels like the sales associates, there's just a different, for lack of a better word, a different vibe in there. REFINITIV STREETEVENTS | www.refinitiv.com | Contact Us consent of Refinitiv. 'Refinitiv' and the Refinitiv logo are registered trademarks of Refinitiv and its affiliated companies. JUNE 07, 2024 / 12:00PM, JILL.N - Q1 2024 JJill Inc Earnings Call And then, Mark, you made a comment just about better online stores. I think you were talking about them in-store. And as you roll out new systems and new technologies, is there a greater opportunity there to use your sales associates as sort of like in-store influencers to help build and wardrobe for the people who are coming in stores. You could just talk a little bit about that.

Question: Marni Shapiro - The Retail Tracker - Analyst : That's great. And can I ask you guys to follow up also just about some of the younger consumers that you're bringing into the store? I know there are other brands that her first kind of step into the brand is through accessories. You guys dabble in accessories a little bit more online than in store. It's usually on a front table or someplace, but it's not a big story. Even online it's not a big story, but there's a good assortment in certain sub-segments especially. Have you thought about -- I'm curious what your customer, the younger customer comes in to buy first. And have you thought about magnifying some of the accessories as that entry point into the brand?

Question: Marni Shapiro - The Retail Tracker - Analyst : That's great. Thanks, guys. I'll take the rest offline.