LOS ANGELES – American media personality Kim Kardashian’s underwear label Skims plans to open its first permanent stores in 2024 next year as it plots retail expansion in the United States and abroad.
Skims is set to debut its first flagship store in Los Angeles in the first half of 2024, followed by a second opening in New York. The 465 sqm shop in Los Angeles will be located in West Hollywood on Sunset Boulevard near streetwear stores such as Supreme and Kith.
“Kim and I can envision a future where years from today there’s a Skims store anywhere in the world you’d find an Apple store or a Nike store,” said Mr Jens Grede, co-founder and chief executive officer of Skims. “It marks the second chapter.”
Skims began as a direct-to-consumer business in 2019, but it since has dabbled in physical retail through relationships with department stores such as Nordstrom and Saks Fifth Avenue. In recent months, Skims has opened temporary pop-ups in locations like London’s Selfridges department store and Rockefeller Centre in New York.
Executives are looking to open at least four stores in 2024 and speed up expansion once those are in place. They are considering placing shops in US markets that attract regional tourism, including Dallas, Atlanta and Miami.
The company is weighing international flagships as well, after tests in cities like Paris and Hong Kong. On its online shop, 20 per cent of Skims customers are from abroad.
“Our strategy going forward is to open important stores in the world’s most important cities,” Mr Grede said.
Swimwear to underwear
Skims expects to achieve net sales of about US$750 million (S$1 billion) in 2023, up from nearly US$500 million in 2022. So far in 2023, the business has been trending at 75 per cent year-over-year growth, according to Mr Grede.
Product expansion has boosted that growth, as Skims branched out from its original selection of shapewear bodysuits into categories like pyjamas and swimwear. Underwear now accounts for a sizable chunk of its business, and it is now planning to launch a men’s line in October.
Skims was most recently valued at US$3.2 billion in a 2022 financing round, with total funding now at nearly US$400 million. Investors include hedge fund Lone Pine Capital and venture firms Thrive Capital and Imaginary Ventures. Mr Grede declined to say if Skims is seeking additional capital at this time.
Kardashian and Mr Grede are interested in one day taking Skims public, but the chief executive said there are no short- or medium-term plans for an initial public offering. The company hired a chief financial officer in 2022.
“Skims deserves to be a public company – when the time is right,” Mr Grede said. BLOOMBERG
