Major Products: Bath & Body Works home and personal care

New Products: Everyday Luxuries fragrance mists, Netflix collaboration under the Bridgerton, Stranger Things, Disney Princesses and Emily in Paris franchises

Comments: Retail sales fell 1.6% last year, but the company blamed the decline, in part, to a 53rd week in fiscal 2023.

Best known for its home fragrance potpourri of products, BBW continued to expand into international markets, men’s grooming, laundry, lip and haircare. These categories accounted for 10% of sales in 2024, but the company maintains it has the potential to become a larger percentage of product mix. Direct net sales fell 6.8%, due to a decline in orders, which was primarily due to customers selecting the buy online pick up in-store (BOPIS) option, which is recognized as store net sales, and the 53rd week in 2023. The decline was partially offset by an increased average order size. International Net Sales decreased $41 million, or 11.8%, primarily driven by a decline in wholesale shipments to our franchise partners affected by the war in the Middle East. Stores Net Sales increased $27 million, which was effectively flat, primarily due to new store growth and the increase in BOPIS fulfilled orders offset by a decline in average dollar sales and the 53rd week in 2023.

During the year, BBW invested about $245 million in technology and other capital projects to strengthen its infrastructure and improve the customer experience.

As of Feb 1, 2025, BBW operated 1,895 retail stores in the US (1,782) and Canada (113). That’s up from 1,850 the previous year. During 2024, the company opened 106 North American stores, nearly all in off-mall locations, and closed 61 stores, predominantly in malls. When combined with remodeling project,  net square footage grew 3%. This year, North American square footage is expected to grow 2-3%.

‘Compelling Innovation’ Drives Q1 Results

Driven by what the c-suite calls “compelling innovation,” Q1 2025 sales rose 3% to $1.4 billion.

“Our team delivered a strong start to the year driven by the positive customer response to our innovation in the quarter. We’re effectively leveraging our predominantly US-based supply chain to navigate the evolving trade environment, and I’m confident in our ability to adapt to meet the consumer where they are with fragrance innovation and high-quality product at compelling price points as we move through 2025,” said Eva Boratto, CFO, Bath & Body Works.

In May, Daniel Heaf was appointed chief executive officer. He’s BBW’s second new CEO in three years. He replaced Gina Boswell.

“I’m honored to join this iconic brand with a deep sense of purpose and a powerful foundation,” said Heaf. I have already had the privilege of meeting many associates across the company, and I’m incredibly impressed by the passion, dedication and talent across our teams. I believe we’re incredibly well positioned to define and lead the home fragrance and beauty categories globally and accelerate growth.”

Heaf joined BBW from Nike. He held various positions at the athletic shoemaker during his six-year career. Most recently he was chief strategy and transformation officer.

Corporate sales fell 2% to $7.4 billion. Bath & Body Works blamed a 9% decline in direct channel sales. During fiscal 2023, BBW’s customer loyalty program reached 37 million active members. Another success was the launch of a men’s grooming line that includes face and beard care, hair care and shave. BBW also entered the fabric care category with the launch of detergent and fragrance boosters. Novel scents include Champagne Toast, Mahogany Teakwood and Cactus Blossom.

Speaking at a Bank of America (BoA) event earlier this year, CFO Eva Boratto explained that men’s, lip, hair and laundry are all categories that put fragrance first.

“That enables us to attract new customers, to increase share of wallet with existing customers. (In men’s) we rolled out grooming and antiperspirant deodorant this year. Men’s continues to be our strongest growing category. Those new product lines represented about 75% of growth,” she said.

Looking ahead, BBW executives said macroeconomic pressures as well as continuing normalization of hand sanitizer and candle sales post-pandemic will crimp sales gains. Still, the company is pressing on with launches in men’s grooming, hair and lip care, and laundry.

Just 5% of BBW sales come from international markets. Boratto told attendees at the BoA event that international is a key long-term growth for the company.

For the first quarter ended May 4, 2024, sales fell less than 1% to just under $1.4 billion. The company blamed the decline, in part, to some weaker-than-expected international markets. Still, BBW delivered results that were better than expected.

“We are particularly excited with the success of our product introductions and newness, which drove the performance of both our core business and new adjacencies,” said CEO Gina Boswell. “Our focus on building strong brand awareness and engagement is delivering greater customer retention and loyalty.”

At the close of Q1 2024, BBW had more than 1,850 company-operated US locations and over 480 international franchised locations as well as an online storefront at bathandbodyworks.com.

Sales: $7.5 billion

Fiscal 2022 was Bath & Body Works first full-year as a standalone company following the separation of BBW and Victoria’s Secret & Co. in August 2021. Sales fell 4% to $7.5 billion. In-store sales fell 4% to nearly $5.5 billion and online sales fell 8% to $1.7 billion. International sales rose 20% to $339 million.

As consumers emerged from their homes and apartments post-covid, home fragrance and sanitizers sales were down. Total body care sales fell too, but these declines were partially offset by improvement in BBW’s gifting business. Sales of men’s personal care products continued to grow.

For Q1 2023, sales continued to slip, falling 4% to just under $1.4 billion—but in-line with company expectations. Still, CEO Gina Boswell remains upbeat.
“We are moving quickly and implementing our plans to profitably grow sales and drive long-term value for our shareholders,” said Boswell. “I remain excited about the opportunities ahead, and I am confident that the future is bright for Bath & Body Works.”

The company is reshaping its c-suite too. In April, Thilina Gunasinghe was named chief digital & technology officer. He joined Bath & Body Works from McDonald’s Corporation where he most recently served as global vice president, chief technology architect and data officer and was responsible for leading all customer, digital and restaurant technology architecture and data globally. In this newly created role, Gunasinghe will lead Bath & Body Works’ digital and technology strategy, digital operations, data and analytics and transformation.

In May, BBW appointed Maurice Cooper as chief customer officer. Prior to this appointment, Cooper had been at Target, where he was senior vice president, marketing—guest and brand experience. He was responsible for overseeing all omnichannel traffic and developing and executing brand, category and promotional marketing

Wendy Arlin stepped down as chief financial officer this month.

“We are grateful for Wendy’s significant contributions to Bath & Body Works, and appreciate her commitment to ensuring a smooth transition,” said Boswell. “Notably, Wendy was an instrumental member of the team that led the successful spin-off of the Victoria’s Secret business and established Bath & Body Works as a standalone public company, in addition to her work building a strong finance team and helping the company navigate the dynamic operating environment. We wish her all the best in her next chapter.”

Now, BBW is putting the focus on men. In May, the company rolled out a men’s grooming line that includes facial skincare and beard care products.

Finally, the company issued its first ESG report. The company is:

• Increasing ethnic and racial diversity among its leadership, ensuring fair, flexible and healthy workplaces with inclusive benefits and enhancing its supplier diversity program.
• Defining, mapping and publishing a list of priority ingredients which will be the focus of the company’s sustainability programs.
• Measuring and setting a comprehensive baseline carbon footprint for Scope 3 emissions.
• Submitting a science-based greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction target to Science-Based Targets initiative (SBTi).
• Shifting to a packaging model where 50% of its packaging will be recyclable, reusable or compostable.
• Increasing the amount of post-consumer recycled content (PCR) to 33% of its total plastic packaging portfolio.
• As part of its 2030 goals, the company’s actions include:
• Continuous review and updating of its compensation and benefits with evolving best practices.
• Improving the sustainability profile of priority ingredients used throughout its products, from source to use.
• Reducing Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 50%.
• Significantly reducing GHG emissions across its operations and supply chain as the company moves towards net-zero.
• Ensuring 100% of its packaging is recyclable, reusable or compostable.

Sales: $7.9 billion

Nearly a year ago, L Brands completed the separation of the Victoria’s Secret business into an independent, public company through a tax-free spin-off to L Brand shareholders. The new company is Victoria’s Secret & Co. In conjunction with that announcement, L Brands changed its name to Bath & Body Works, Inc. The company said the separation enables BBW to pursue growth strategies best suited to its customer base and strategic objectives.

They’re on to something. Last year, sales rose 22% to nearly $7.9 billion.

For the first quarter of 2022, which ended April 30, sales fell 1% to more than $1.4 billion. In a statement, Nash said business is very strong, execution is excellent, and BBW’s strategy of delivering affordable luxuries to customers is more relevant than ever. With a vertically integrated and approximately 85% domestic supply chain, Bath & Body Works is taking advantage of the agility in its inventory decision making to leverage early customer reads and chase its best performers in season.

“We combine the best of newness and daily use. Our business is very fast, and we are able to quickly adjust to changing customer preferences,” she said. “Looking ahead in 2022, we are continuing to plan prudently and use our agility to chase winners. We are accelerating investments in the business to drive our long-term growth, while at the same time, our team continues to successfully navigate the inflationary environment.”

On May 12, CEO Andrew Meslow left the company for health reasons. Nash is serving as interim CEO until a replacement is named.