Womenswear retailer City Chic signals US sales recovery with new-season stock ordered

City Chic has signalled a sales recovery in the US following Donald Trump’s volatile tariffs, with the womenswear retailer replenishing new-season stock in anticipation of customers flocking to its stores for summer clothes.

Shares in the Brett Blundy-backed retailer were 3.6 per cent higher at 14.5¢ before the close on Monday after its chief executive Phil Ryan said the US business remained profitable and exceeded sales expectations.

“The resilience of the US consumer has been a welcome surprise and we’re encouraged by the underlying strength of our direct-to-consumer channel,” Mr Ryan said.

“As a result, summer 2026 inventory has been ordered to support a return to higher sales levels in (the second half of the 2026 financial year).”

City Chic, which has a market capitalisation of over $50 million, generates 20 per cent of its revenue from the US and 90 per cent of its products are made in China.

Several rounds of retaliatory tariffs by the US and China last year brought tariffs as high as 145 per cent. In October, Mr Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed to extend a pause on the triple-digit tariffs on Chinese goods..

In Monday’s trading update, City Chic said US sales were tipped to decline 31.4 per cent to $9.7 million in the half-year, reflecting “a deliberate reduction in inventory in response to tariff-related volatility”.

Sales at its 78 stores across Australia and New Zealand — which includes Carousel and Perth DFO in WA — are tipped to grow 7.4 per cent to $59.4m.

The company expects pre-tax earnings to hit between $6m and $7m, up from $3.5m a year ago.