What makes Birkenstock special?
“There’s no one else with the footbed and its benefits,” said Birkenstock chief executive officer Oliver Reichert on a third-quarter earnings conference call Thursday.
But it wasn’t just sandals, driven by newness, that were particularly strong in the quarter at the brand’s direct-to-consumer channel, he said. The brand’s closed-toe business is expanding too, led by newness in both clogs and shoes.
“We are constantly driving newness and innovation in both open-toe and closed-toe, growing our global fan base,” the CEO said. “We create new trends from within our brand to build and expand our archive, and extend usage occasions.”
He cited the Santa Clarita and the Repetto collaboration as efforts to capture the “increasing global demand for ballerina,” which Reichert also noted “will be the trend for the next three to five years.”
Product innovation is most visible in the brand’s premium 1774 collection. In addition to Repetto, the brand also collaborated with Song for the Mute and Ader Erro, launches that target the female-led and growing popularity of the ballet flat. Reichert said the “global movement also resulted in a very strong demand for the mary jane style.”
Overall, Reichert said the company remains “super confident in the strength of the brand. We are purpose-driven and keep strong global demand for the footbed.” An added advantage is the ability to target a diverse range of consumers across geography, gender, age and income.
“Our total addressable market is only limited by the global population. This gives us flexibility to drive growth regardless of global or regional macro conditions,” he said. “We manage our distribution with discipline to maintain scarcity, properly segment the market, manage channel growth, and protect full-price realization.”
The company continues to invest in production capacity to meet consumer demand. It invested 26 million euros in capital expenditures during the quarter to add production capacity and expand retail operations globally.
For the third quarter ended June 30, the German footwear firm said profits were 109.6 million euros, down 15.2 percent from year-ago levels, on a revenue gain of 13.3 percent to 719.5 million euros. But while profits were down, adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) reflected a margin of 33.7 percent, which was better than the consensus estimate of 33.1 percent.
The company said it saw double-digit revenue growth across all segments. In the quarter, DTC revenue was up 14 percent, while wholesale sales rose 13 percent. Reichert noted that DTC performance was driven by company-owned retail doors, noting also that same-store sales were strong, up in the high single digits.
“We also saw accelerating online growth. Newness on the product side, great personalization and stronger storytelling are making the digital experience more compelling and driving the conversation,” Reichert said. “This was most impactful in Europe, where we saw a clear step-up in online performance with 93 percent full-price realization, even as the broader market became more promotional.”
Based on third-quarter performance, the company raised its fiscal 2026 outlook, with revenue growth expected at 15 percent and adjusted EBITDA to at least 710 million euros.
The company added 13 new company-owned stores, bringing that total to 124 doors.
BTIG’s consumer retail and lifestyle brands analyst Janine Stichter has a “buy” rating on shares of Birkenstock.
“Fiscal third-quarter results came in largely ahead of expectations, while top-line and adjusted EBITDA guidance were raised slightly as underlying demand remained strong across channels and geographies,” she wrote in a research report, noting that DTC accelerated and outpaced wholesale for the first time in over two years. In addition, wholesale remained “strong and consistent with recent trends, supported by double-digit percentage growth at key partners globally despite a more promotional marketplace, particularly in the U.S. and EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa),” she said.
More importantly, the company “has been able to maintain its full-price integrity, underscoring continued demand for the brand,” Stichter concluded.