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Some retailers believe you’ve got to make more clothes to sell more clothes. Case in point: UpWest, a new brand launched by troubled clothing retailer Express.
UpWest is a D2C clothing line for men and women with a cozy-upscale bent—like what the Monterey Five would wear for a seaside huddle. It's the opposite of Express’s typical lineup, but Express didn't launch a new brand to double the urbanite workwear aesthetic it's already offering.
UpWest is a fleece hail Mary. Right now, Express has one direction and it’s downhill.
- Sales at Express have declined for several quarters and its stock has dropped 80% in the past year.
- The company currently has a 4% to 9.99% chance of filing for bankruptcy, according to Retail Dive data.
- Said CEO Tim Baxter: “While our primary focus remains on returning the Express business to long-term, profitable growth, UpWest brings something new and exciting to the market”—aka an opportunity to grab consumers where Express has come up empty-handed.
Express has tried to fluff up its e-comm offering before. Last year, it launched a rental subscription service, Express Style Trial, to keep pace with the emerging clothing rental market. It hasn’t shared how many consumers use it.