Store Expansion, Private Labels Fuel Boot Barn's Sales Growth

As part of its annual Fastest-Growing Retailers report, which ranks the top 50 U.S-based, publicly traded companies based on year-over-year (YoY) sales growth, Total Retail profiles the top retailers in the ranking. This year that included a profile of Boot Barn, which increased its YoY sales by nearly 67 percent in its 2022 fiscal year, good for the No. 1 position.

So how is Boot Barn doing it? This profile features insights into the company's strategy for growing sales (and profits) even amidst a challenging macro economic environment.

Boot Barn is an Irvine, Calif.-based lifestyle retailer of western and work-related footwear, apparel and accessories for men, women and children. It posted impressive gains across multiple sales channels in its 2022 fiscal year. For example, same-store sales increased 53.7 percent compared to the prior year period, the result of an increase in retail store same-store sales of 57.2 percent and an increase in e-commerce same-store sales of 38.7 percent. For the first time in Boot Barn's history, it exceeded $1 billion in total sales ($1.5 billion in total).

Boot Barn opened 28 new brick-and-mortar stores in its most recent fiscal year, bringing its total to 300. It plans to triple that number as part of an aggressive store expansion plan. That increased physical footprint and strengthened digital prowess are part of Boot Barn's plan to capture an even larger share of the growing
western-wear market. In fact, Boot Barn President and CEO Jim Conroy noted on the company’s fourth-quarter earnings call that an independent third-party study revealed the retailer’s estimated total addressable market to be $40 billion, compared to its previous $20 billion estimate.

“We believe our progress in expanding our business and attracting new consumers to our brand is proving successful and has established a strong foundation for future growth,” Conroy said in a press release announcing Boot Barn’s fourth quarter and full year results.

To fulfill Conroy's vision of growing the business and attracting new customers, Boot Barn has expanded its product assortment, including the introduction of owned brands such as Shyanne, Cody James, Moonshine Spirit, among others. In fact, three of the retailer's top five selling brands are its own exclusive brands, which are more profitable to the retailer than its third-party brands. The penetration that Boot Barn has seen with its private-label brands is another reason to believe that the company is primed for continued success in 2023.

To see the full rankings of the top 50 fastest-growing retailers as well as read the profiles of this year's top performers, download the full report here.