Tapestry lifts FY27 guidance as Coach offsets Kate Spade

Tom Whitfield

Tapestry raised fiscal 2027 revenue guidance to $8.5 billion-$8.6 billion (£6.33 billion-£6.40 billion), lifting the floor and ceiling by $100 million, after Coach lifted first-quarter group revenue to $1.9 billion (£1.41 billion).

First-quarter group revenue rose 11% on a reported basis and 12% pro forma, excluding the Stuart Weitzman business Tapestry sold in August 2025. Adjusted EBITDA reached $524 million (£390.1 million). Under US generally accepted accounting principles, operating income increased 29% to $424 million (£315.6 million).

CEO Joanne Crevoiserat said: "Building on this outperformance, we are raising our full year outlook, reflecting our confidence in the durability of our growth." She added that the company's "Amplify strategy continues to bring new consumers to our brands through our distinctive combination of creativity, craftsmanship, and value."

Tapestry's previous range was $8.4 billion-$8.5 billion (£6.25 billion-£6.33 billion). The new range represents 6%-7% constant-currency growth, excluding the 53rd week in fiscal 2027. For the second quarter, the company expects constant-currency revenue growth of 5%-6%.

Coach carries the quarter

Coach generated $1.66 billion (£1.24 billion) in revenue, up 16%. The result combined a low-double-digit increase in the average selling price per handbag with a low-single-digit rise in the number of handbags sold. Selling price did more work than unit growth. For sourcing teams, that distinction matters because the release provides no factory-utilization data to show whether production volume kept pace with revenue.

Overseas Coach sales increased 30%, compared with 7% growth in North America at constant currency. At group level, pro forma constant-currency revenue rose 22% in Europe and 39% in Greater China. The regional spread gives commercial teams a clearer map of where reported growth sits, although the release provides no country or channel detail beyond those rates.

Tapestry reported 2.6 million new customers globally during the quarter. Approximately 35% were Gen Z, and demand from existing customers increased. The figures support the company's acquisition narrative, but they do not disclose cohort margin, repeat-purchase rate or channel profitability. Any demand-planning model therefore needs brand and regional inputs, not the headline customer count alone.

Kate Spade moves in the other direction

Kate Spade sales fell 10% to $233 million (£173.4 million), down from $260 million (£193.5 million). The brand recorded a $20 million (£14.9 million) GAAP operating loss, compared with a $6 million (£4.5 million) profit a year earlier. Its directly operated store count declined from 326 to 318 after eight international closures.

That contraction prevents the group result from reading as uniform brand strength. Coach delivered 16% growth, while Kate Spade moved from profit to operating loss and reduced its directly operated footprint. For vendors and retail partners, the figures point to different inventory and distribution decisions by brand, not a single Tapestry demand curve.

Tapestry's fiscal 2026 results, published in August, showed revenue passing $8 billion for the first time, driven by 24% growth at Coach. The latest quarter extends Coach's lead, but Kate Spade's decline shows why group-level forecasting cannot substitute for brand-level planning.

What does the raised outlook change for brand and sourcing teams?

The $100 million increase at each end of the range lifts expectations, yet Tapestry still guides to 5%-6% constant-currency growth in the second quarter, below the first quarter's 12% pro forma increase on a different comparison basis.

The immediate planning signal therefore centers on Coach's pricing, handbag units and international demand rather than a broad acceleration across every brand and market. The results do not identify purchase commitments, factory capacity, lead times, certification requirements or who carries inventory risk.

Sourcing teams can use the guidance to frame demand scenarios and supplier conversations, but they cannot translate it into production commitments without manufacturing terms and cost ownership. A raised sales target is not, by itself, a purchase order.

The practical verdict is straightforward: Coach sets the pace, while Kate Spade sets the downside risk. The next proof point is Tapestry's 5%-6% second-quarter growth forecast, with no manufacturing detail yet provided to convert that target into supplier commitments.