Via Spiga’s Website Is Down — Here’s Why
Via Spiga shoppers might have noticed that the brand’s website is down — but it’s not what you think.
Customers who visited the label’s e-commerce platform have seen a notice that reads “Until We Meet Again,” followed by a message, “Thank you for all your support. You’ve inspired us endlessly.” It also included a phone number for inquiries regarding previous orders.
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In a statement to FN, Jay Schmidt, president of brand portfolio at parent Caleres, said that the company had decided to “pause” operations at Via Spiga as it “repositions” the label.
“We are always developing and evolving our portfolio of brands to best meet what is relevant to the consumer,” he wrote in an email.
Caleres previously announced the move in its fourth-quarter earnings call in mid-March. At the time, it said that it had also entered into an exclusive partnership with Veronica Beard in an attempt to further its reach into the attainable luxury space. It also relaunched the ’70s-inspired Zodiac brand.
Along with those moves, the company — which owns Famous Footwear, Sam Edelman, Vionic and more labels — made the decision to shift away from its partnerships with Diane von Furstenberg and Carlos Santana.
“We were really able to reapply some of those resources to the brands that we felt had more growth opportunity and make sure that we were leveraging those capabilities,” chairman, president and CEO Diane Sullivan said during the call.
In June, the St. Louis-based shoe group posted a first-quarter adjusted net loss of $50.4 million, or a loss of $1.30 per diluted share, compared with the prior year’s income of $15 million, or adjusted earnings of 36 cents a share. Revenues for the three months ended May 2 dropped 41.4% to $397.2 million.
In order to maintain liquidity amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the retailer said at the time that it worked to manage inventory levels, leverage its partnerships to reduce product receipts and eliminated or deferred all nonessential capital projects. It had also begun negotiations to modify leases, including the deferral and abatement of certain rent payments.
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