Ross Stores Execs See Delta-Driven Supply Chain Problems

Executives at Ross Stores, the parent of Ross Dress for Less and dd’s DISCOUNTS apparel and home goods stores, are concerned that a global supply chain crunch driven by the COVID-19 Delta variant could deliver a hit to upcoming earnings, even as the company reported what executives said were strong second-quarter results on Thursday (Aug 19).

Ross reported net income of $494 million, or $1.40 a share, on sales of $4.8 billion for the three months ending July 31, compared with net income of $22 million, or 6 cents a share, on sales of $2.7 billion for the three months ending Aug. 31.

In a conference call with analysts following the earnings release, Ross Group President and Chief Operating Officer Michael J. Hartshorn said: “Looking ahead, there remains much uncertainty on the sustainability of the positive external factors that benefited our first-half results, as well as the potential risks we could face from the spread of COVID variants and worsening industrywide supply chain congestion.”

Vice Chair and Chief Executive Barbara Rentler said in response to a question from an analyst: “The supply chain congestion is causing all kinds of receipt delays right now, and we expect those actually to worsen as the year goes on.”

Rentler noted there is “plenty of supply,” but also said that industry-wide problems could present opportunities: “At some point in time, those goods will back up and we will see those as potentially an opportunity either for packaway or to flow depending upon the business or what the types of products are. So, at this moment, you would think that would happen probably either late in the year or at the beginning of next year, if I had to pick a timeframe.”

As to whether supply chain problems will hurt the holiday shopping season, Rentler said: “A lot of these things are a timing issue of how goods will slide, and what goods might be late that might be available for us to buy in season. It’s kind of like a moving target.”

The key to coping with an unusual supply of merchandise, Rentler said, will be the company’s “flexible business model, so as long as we can offer a treasure hunt and a broad assortment, that’s what we’re going to do.”

Hartshorn said the company should benefit long-term from the leaner inventory management strategies it was forced to adopt during the pandemic. “We’ve operated with lower inventories in stores,” he said. “We’ve been able to chase the business. And that has driven faster turns and lower markdowns. What we’ve done throughout the pandemic is tried to operate very close to need. And we think we can do that not only during the pandemic but post-pandemic, which will benefit margins in the future.”

Separately, executives said COVID-19 remains a threat to demand. About 50 percent of the Dublin, California-based company’s stores are in California, Texas and Florida, Hartshorn said. Those three states continue to suffer from COVID-19 at a rate higher than the country as a whole.

Ross plans to open 45 Ross and 20 dd’s DISCOUNTS stores in the 2021 calendar year, while closing or relocating about 10 stores, Rentler said. “As mentioned in last quarter’s call, in 2022, we expect to return to our normal annual opening program of approximately 100 new stores.”