Men’s Wearhouse Owner Tailored Brands Files for IPO

Menswear company Tailored Brands Inc. filed publicly for an initial public offering, the latest step in its return to the public market. The holding company for brands including Men’s Wearhouse and Jos. A. Bank had net income of $44.9 million in the three months ended May 2 on revenue of $681.8 million, compared with net income of $50.7 million on revenue of $644.4 million in the same period a year earlier, according to a filing Friday with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. The Houston-based company announced in April that it had filed confidentially for an IPO. Its brands also include Moores and family retailer K&G Fashion Superstore. Plans are to open more than 500 new stores over the next decade

Total Retail's Take: This announcement is surprising yet welcome news for the retail industry, particularly for the specialty apparel sector. Just six years after emerging from bankruptcy and after closing more than 400 stores, Tailored Brands is betting the market for men's tailored apparel has stabilized (aided by return-to-office mandates and event-driven formalwear occasions) and that its brick-and-mortar stores are core to its growth strategy.

Within those stores, Men's Wearhouse is going to lean heavier into services (e.g., professional tailorings, suit fittings, tuxedo rentals, same-day alterations) and less into physical inventory. This is a model that Nordstrom has enjoyed success with in its Nordstrom Local format. The capital raised from its IPO can be used to help fund Tailored Brands' store expansion strategy; digital investments, including marketing to a wider range of customers; and debt reduction.