Momentum is continuing at Vince, the California-inspired contemporary brand, which on Wednesday reported solid results for the fourth quarter and year ended Jan. 31.

Improvements in the product offering, greater full-price selling, scaling the menswear business and an enhanced e-commerce experience contributed to Vince’s gains including a 4.7 percent increase in net sales to $83.7 million and improvements in profitability. The year-over-year sales gain was driven by a 10.4 percent increase in the direct-to-consumer segment which offset a 1.2 percent decline in the wholesale segment, which accounts for 55 percent of total volume.

“It starts with product. The product has never been better,” Brendan Hoffman, chief executive officer, told WWD, discussing the performance at Vince last year. “The core team has been together for seven-plus years, and our product continues to elevate across women’s and men’s. We had to take price [increases] in the back half and saw no drop in units. Customers are seeing so much value at Vince even with the price increases. We’re also benefiting from people trading down from luxury into contemporary. Vince is well positioned to take advantage of that.”

Hoffman also cited improvements on the brand’s e-commerce website, including “elevated creative and more intuitive ways for the customer to shop. We also leaned more into social media and received some good celebrity placements over the last six months.”

Asked about bestsellers, Hoffman said in women’s ready-to-wear: “We continued to see sweaters and outerwear drive our Q4 business which was furthered by Vince’s take on occasion wear and elevated dressing.” Demand increased on sets and outfitting, including silk skirts and tops that could be worn together or as separates, and on pants, particularly core fits like the bias pant and cropped flare. 

“For our men’s business, we had a significant increase in bottoms, from our core offering as well as novelty including our pleated dress pants,” Hoffman said. He also cited increases in suiting and outerwear.

“Cashmere sweaters continued to be a significant part of our business as our largest category right behind knit tops for men’s,” Hoffman said.

“This was our second good year in a row,” Hoffman concluded. “We’re excited to build on that. Q1 has continued that momentum.”

In the fourth quarter, gross profit was $41.1 million, or 49.1 percent of net sales, compared with gross profit of $40.1 million, or 50.1 percent of net sales, in the year-ago quarter. The decrease in the margin rate was primarily driven by the negative impacts of 300 basis points due to tariffs, 160 basis points from higher promotional activity and approximately 125 basis points from increased freight costs. These negative impacts were partially offset by the positive impact of approximately 380 basis points, primarily due to higher pricing.

Loss from operations was $2.9 million compared to a loss of $29.7 million in the year-ago period. The improvement was primarily driven by a $32 million non-cash goodwill impairment charge recorded in the year-ago quarter, offset by the bad debt expense of $6 million related to the Saks Global bankruptcy reorganization. Excluding the impact of the bad debt, adjusted income from operations was $3.1 million.

The net loss in the fourth quarter was $3.6 million, or 28 cents per share, compared with a net loss of $28.3 million, or $2.24 per share.

“I am incredibly proud of the strong operating results we delivered in the fourth quarter reflecting the powerful momentum we built throughout fiscal 2025,” Hoffman said in a statement. “Our team executed across all areas of the business, delivering nearly 5 percent sales growth with profitability exceeding the high end of our guidance ranges. The strength we saw in our direct-to-consumer business, with approximately 10 percent growth, demonstrates the power of our strategic initiatives as well as the quality of our product offering which continues to resonate with customers.”

For 2026 Vince expects net sales to increase by 3 percent to 6 percent while adjusted operating income as a percent of sales totals 3.5 percent to 4 percent.