For more than a month, companies ranging from Delta to Adidas have pulled their earnings guidance or warned of price increases due to economic uncertainty amid President Donald Trump’s trade war.
Amer Sports, which owns high-end outdoor brands including Arc’teryx, Salomon, and Wilson, is brushing it off.
The Helsinki-based company reported first-quarter revenue of $1.47 billion, a 23.5% increase from a year ago, and raised its full-year guidance. Amer expects revenues to grow from 13–15% to 15–17% for 2025. Analysts at BNP Paribas wrote that based on first-quarter results and second-quarter guidance, “we could see the company raise the full year as the year progresses.”
Amer CFO Andrew Page said in its earnings release Tuesday that the Trump Administration’s tariffs will have “negligible” impact on its profits this year.
Revenue from all three of its segments—technical apparel, outdoor performance, and ball and racket sports—rose meaningfully in the quarter, illustrating Amer’s strong pricing power.
“Led by Arc’teryx and Salomon footwear, our unique portfolio of premium technical brands continues to create white space and take market share in sports and outdoor markets around the world,” CEO James Zheng said in the company statement. The ball and racket segment, led by Wilson, grew by 12%.
Amer’s outperformance underscores a growing distinction between retailers consumers are favoring despite tariffs and higher costs, and retailers whose customers are starting to pull back.
On Holdings, which last week reported earnings that beat expectations (Q1 sales rose 40%), said it plans to raise prices on some U.S. products starting this summer—not because of tariffs, but rather because it’s in “a strong position to have earned pricing power.” Adidas, on the other hand, said it will have to raise prices if the tariffs that are currently on pause ultimately go through—despite its strong quarter.
On a conference call with analysts, Zheng pointed out that in addition to stellar performance from “flagship brand” Arc’teryx, he called out the momentum behind Salomon sneakers.
“We are really starting to see consumers all around the world respond to their unique performance and style attributes,” Zheng said.
Salomon sneakers notched $1 billion in sales in 2024, “but it’s still tiny relative to the $180 billion global sneaker market,” he said, adding that the shoes have resonated with shoppers in both the lifestyle and technical categories.
UBS analysts said Amer’s quarter reinforces their view that brands with strong momentum—including On and Hoka—“can still deliver robust growth despite elevated macro uncertainty. While the consumer environment in key markets like China remains choppy, we think small brands like Arc’teryx, On, and Hoka can still deliver big growth by taking market share against struggling competitors.”
Regionally, Asia-Pacific and China, saw 49% and 43% jumps in revenues year over year, respectively. The Americas and Europe region each had 12% revenue growth compared to a year earlier. China’s surge in interest in outdoor sports like hiking and camping—which has been, in part, pushed by favorable government policies—is benefiting Amer.
BNP Paribas analysts wrote that the bank has gotten lots of questions from clients about a slowdown in Chinese consumption and the potential impact on Amer. “Today’s results are testament that some international brands are winning, and some are clearly not. Amer’s brands are in the winning camp. … Amer is not just an Asia growth story, it’s a global growth story,” they wrote.
Even if the higher tariffs of 145% on Chinese imports returned and Trump’s initial “Liberation Day” tariffs on other countries went into effect (before the 90-day pause), Page said the effects would be minimal. “Over time, we believe we will be able to mitigate the majority of even the higher tariff rates,” he said.
As of 2024, Amer sources about 30% of its products from China, about 40% from Vietnam, with Canada and Mexico accounting for less than 1% of total global sourcing, according to its latest annual report.
Shares of Amer closed 19% higher Tuesday.
