British luxury interiors, fashion and lifestyle brand House of Hackney is doubling down on its eco stance by hiring a second ‘Mother Nature & Future Generations Director’.
The position’s being made to advance what the brand calls a “groundbreaking move to champion sustainability and ensure future generations have a voice in business”.
Last year, House of Hackney created the Directorship and now the B Corp certified design house wants a second director to join its board “following an incredible first year with Brontie Ansell, co-founder of Lawyers For Nature, representing Mother Nature & Future Generations”.
This “innovative role reflects House of Hackney’s mission to act as a restoration project in Nature, Craft, Community, and Connection”, it said.
“With the natural world as [our] muse at House of Hackney, [we] aim to unlock a business model that moves away from an exploitative capitalist one, and instead honours, protects and centres Nature. The addition of this role will hold the company to a high level of accountability; which they readily welcome”, it said.
Frieda Gormley, co-founder of House of Hackney, added: “The Director of Nature and Future Generations will serve as the conscience of our company. This role is not only about accountability but about inspiring change within our industry and beyond.”
She added: “It is very exciting to bear witness to what might come next for the House of Hackney team and the company as a whole. They have significant plans, courage and determination, which of course is often all you need to effect significant change.”
The new position’s responsibilities will include: Advocating for Mother Nature in board discussions, challenging business roadmaps that deviate from mission goals; driving innovation in sustainable product development and material sourcing, with an emphasis on regenerating ecosystems; and delivering a public annual report on the company’s progress toward its mission.
The position comes with a £25k annual salary and will be based at the company’s London headquarters in Shoreditch, with a flexible working pattern averaging three days a month.
Deckers Outdoor on Thursday beat third-quarter sales estimates on robust holiday demand for its Hoka running shoes, but an in-line annual forecast caused the footwear maker’s shares to tumble 17% in extended trading.
Hoka shoes with their oversized soles have been gaining market share from brands such as Nike in the sportswear category. The brand, which retails for up to $300 in the United States, have also enjoyed full-price sales.
This drove up the company’s third-quarter revenue by 17% to $1.83 billion, beating analysts’ average estimate of $1.73 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG. Deckers also raised its annual net sales forecast for a second time this year.
“The guidance looks pretty conservative and considering the beat, it’s bit of a negative read into the out quarter,” said Drake MacFarlane, analyst at MScience.
The popularity of the Hoka shoes and the success of the company’s Ugg boots and sandals has helped it post double-digit revenue growth for nearly seven quarters.
The company now expects annual net sales to increase about 15% to $4.9 billion, compared with its prior expectation of about 12% growth to $4.8 billion. Analysts estimated an increase of 14.9% to $4.93 billion.
Deckers expects annual earnings per share of $5.75 to $5.80, compared with its prior forecast of $5.15 to $5.25.
Amazon.com is increasing its advertising on billionaire Elon Musk’s social media platform X, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter.
The major shift comes after the e-commerce giant withdrew much of its advertising from the platform more than a year ago due to concerns over hate speech.
In 2023, Apple also pulled all of its advertising from X and has recently been in discussions about testing ads on the platform, the report said.
Several ad agencies, tech and media companies had also suspended advertising on X following Musk’s endorsement of an antisemitic post that falsely accused members of the Jewish community of inciting hatred against white people.
Monthly U.S. ad revenue at social media platform X has declined by at least 55% year-over-year each month since Musk bought the company, formerly known as Twitter, in October 2022. He had acknowledged that an extended boycott by advertisers could bankrupt X.
Musk has become one of the most influential figures following President Donald Trump‘s re-election. He now leads the Department of Government Efficiency, which aims to cut $2 trillion in government spending.
Italian luxury goods group Salvatore Ferragamo said on Thursday its revenue dropped by 4% at constant currencies in the fourth quarter, flagging “encouraging results” from its direct-to-consumer sales which were overall flat in the last three months of the year.
Sales in the North American region, which accounted for 29% of total revenue, were up 6.3% in the quarter. However, the Asia Pacific area saw a 25% drop in revenue at constant exchange rates.
The slowdown in global demand for luxury goods, especially in China, has made the group’s turnaround harder. Overall preliminary revenues reached 1.03 billion euros in 2024, in line with analysts’ estimates, according to an LSEG consensus.
“January shows an acceleration in our DTC channel’s growth, albeit supported by the different timing of the Chinese New Year and a favourable comparison base versus last year”, Chief Executive Marco Gobbetti said in a statement.