The Buckle, Inc. (‘Buckle’) operates as a retailer of medium to better-priced casual apparel, footwear, and accessories for fashion-conscious men, women, and kids.
The company operates various retail stores in 42 states throughout the United States under the names ‘Buckle’ and ‘Buckle Youth.’ The company markets a wide selection of mostly brand name casual apparel, including denims, other casual bottoms, tops, sportswear, outerwear, accessories, and footwear. The company emphasizes personalized...
The Buckle, Inc. (‘Buckle’) operates as a retailer of medium to better-priced casual apparel, footwear, and accessories for fashion-conscious men, women, and kids.
The company operates various retail stores in 42 states throughout the United States under the names ‘Buckle’ and ‘Buckle Youth.’ The company markets a wide selection of mostly brand name casual apparel, including denims, other casual bottoms, tops, sportswear, outerwear, accessories, and footwear. The company emphasizes personalized attention to its customers and provides customer services, such as free hemming, free gift-packaging, easy layaways, the Buckle private label credit card, and a guest loyalty program. Most stores are located in regional shopping malls and lifestyle centers.
Merchandising
The company's merchandising strategy is designed to create loyalty by offering a wide selection of key brand name and private label merchandise, and providing a broad range of value-added services. The company provides a specialty apparel store experience with merchandise designed to appeal to the fashion-conscious 15 to 30-year-olds. The merchandise mix includes denims, casual bottoms, tops, sportswear, outerwear, accessories, and footwear. Denim is a significant contributor to total sales (42.5% of fiscal 2024 net sales) and is key to the company's merchandising strategy. The company attracts guests with its wide selection of branded and private label denim, and a wide variety of fits, finishes, sizes, and styles. Tops are also significant contributors to total sales (29.0% of fiscal 2024 net sales). The company strives to provide a continually changing selection of the latest casual fashions.
Brand name merchandise accounted for approximately 53% of the company's net sales during fiscal 2024. The remaining balance consists of private label merchandise from exclusive brands, including BKE, Buckle Black, Ace High, Daytrip, Departwest, FITZ + EDDI, Freshwear, Gentry Country, Gilded Intent, Gimmicks, J.B. Holt, Maven Co-op, Modish Rebel, Nova Industries, Outpost Makers, Reclaim, Salvage, Sterling & Stitch, Veece, and Willow & Root. The company's merchandisers continually work with manufacturers and vendors to produce brand name merchandise, the majority of which is exclusive in terms of color, style, and fit. While the brands offered by the company change to meet current customer preferences, the company offers denims from brands, such as Flying Monkey, Hidden, KanCan, Levi’s, Miss Me, Rock Revival, Wrangler, and 7 For All Mankind. Other key brands include Affliction, American Fighter, Ariat, Billabong, Birkenstock, Free People, Goorin Bros., Hey Dude, Hooey, Howitzer, Hurley, K. Swiss, Kimes Ranch, Lost Calf, Mia, Oakley, Old Row, Pendleton, Ray-Ban, Reebok, Ridge, RVCA, SOREL, Steve Madden, Sullen, Very G, White Crow, and Z Supply.
The company also incorporates specialized services, such as free hemming, free gift-packaging, layaways, a guest loyalty program, the Buckle private label credit card, personalized stylist services, and a special order system that allows stores to obtain specifically requested merchandise from other company stores or from the company's online order fulfillment center.
The company continually evaluates its store design as part of the overall shopping experience and feels its current design continues to be well received by both guests and developers. This store design contains warm wood fixtures and floors, real brick finishes, and an appealing ceiling and lighting layout that creates a comfortable environment for the guest to shop. The signature Buckle-B icon is used throughout the store on fixtures, graphic images, and print materials to reinforce the brand identity. To enhance selling and product presentation, the company continually updates the fixtures in its stores. The company has been able to modify the store design for specialized venues, including lifestyle centers and larger mall fronts. Over the past several fiscal years, the company has also developed updated storefront designs that enhance the exterior visibility for stores relocating from enclosed mall locations to outdoor power centers and lifestyle centers.
Marketing and Advertising
The company partners with key merchandise vendors on joint advertising and promotional opportunities that expand the marketing reach and position Buckle as the first choice for these specialty branded fashions.
The company also offers programs to build and strengthen its relationship with loyal guests. The Buckle Rewards incentive program rewards loyal guests and cardholders with real-time rewards after 300 points have been earned. There are three tiers in the program, providing guests with opportunities to earn additional points and exclusive benefits. The base tier is available for all guests who enroll, while the top two tiers are exclusive to holders of a Buckle private label credit card. In addition to the stated benefits, the company also extends other exclusive offers to Buckle Rewards members, such as special bonus points opportunities, targeted mailings, and other exclusive offers. The company provides a special Buckle Premier+ tier for its most loyal cardholders. Buckle Premier+ cardholders must purchase at least $1,000 annually using their Buckle credit card to qualify, and these guests enjoy additional benefits, including free ground shipping on online purchases and special orders. The Buckle credit card marketing program is partially funded by Comenity Bank, a third-party bank that owns the credit card accounts.
The company supports a corporate website at www.buckle.com. The company’s website serves as a portal to enhance, influence, and help its valued guests through their decision journey, reaching a growing online audience. Buckle.com provides an interactive, informative, and brand-building environment where guests can shop, discover, learn, engage, and seek information, as well as search for career opportunities and read the company’s latest financial news. The company also maintains an opt-in email database. Targeted email campaigns are deployed informing guests of the latest styles and promotions. Paid-search, organic-search, social media, and affiliate marketing programs are individually managed to increase online and in-store traffic. The company continually invests in enhancements to the site's features and functionality, helping improve the overall digital guest experience and facilitate the growth in online traffic.
Purchasing and Distribution
The company purchases products from manufacturers within the United States, as well as from agents who source goods from foreign manufacturers. In fiscal 2024, Axis Denim (which produces private label denim for the company) accounted for 20.4% of net sales, and Rock Revival/Miss Me accounted for 10.4% of the company’s net sales.
Competition
In the men's merchandise area, the company competes primarily with specialty retailers, such as Abercrombie & Fitch, American Eagle Outfitters, Boot Barn, Dick's Sporting Goods, Gap, Hollister, Journey's, PacSun, Scheels, and Tilly’s. The men's market also competes with certain department stores, such as Dillard's, Macy’s, and Nordstrom.
In the women's merchandise area, the company competes primarily with specialty retailers, such as Abercrombie & Fitch, Altar'd State, American Eagle Outfitters, Boot Barn, Free People, Garage, H&M, Hollister, Journey's, Lulus, Madewell, Maurices, PacSun, Scheels, Tilly's, Urban Outfitters, and Zara. The women's market also competes with department stores, such as Dillard's, Macy’s, and Nordstrom.
Seasonality
The company's business is seasonal, with the holiday season (from approximately November 15 to December 30) and the back-to-school season (from approximately July 15 to September 1) historically contributing the greatest volume of net sales. For fiscal year 2024 (year ended February 1, 2025), the holiday and back-to-school seasons accounted for approximately 35% of the company's fiscal year net sales.
Trademarks
‘BUCKLE’, ‘BUCKLE BLACK’, ‘BKE’, ‘BKE BOUTIQUE’, ‘BKE SOLE’, ‘DAYTRIP’, ‘RECLAIM’, ‘B BELIEVES’, ‘GIMMICKS’, ‘BKE RESERVE’, ‘BUCKLE BELIEVES’, ‘FADE BY BKE’, ‘FITZ + EDDI’, ‘WILLOW & ROOT’, ‘TWINE & STARK’, ‘INDIE SPIRIT DESIGNS’, ‘BKE CORE’, ‘GILDED INTENT’, ‘QUINN & COPPER’, ‘DAYTRIP REFINED’, ‘RED BY BKE’, ‘J.B. HOLT’, ‘OUTPOST MAKERS’, ‘DEPARTWEST’, ‘DEPARTWEST logo’, ‘GREHY’, ‘NOVA INDUSTRIES’, ‘SAY YOU WILL’, ‘BRILL BOUTIQUE’, ‘BUCKLE B’, ‘BUCKLE REWARDS’, ‘BKE ESSENTIALS’, ‘BOUTIQUE BY BKE’, ‘FRESHWEAR’, ‘33 COASTAL’, ‘LAB VALLEY’, ‘STERLING & STITCH’, and ‘B’ icon are federally registered trademarks of the company. The company also owns trademarks for certain product designs.
History
The company was founded in 1948. The company was incorporated in Nebraska in 1948. The company was formerly known as Mills Clothing, Inc. and changed its name to The Buckle, Inc. in April 1991.