Women's brand on cue for autumn season

Australian womenswear brands Cue and Veronika Maine have reportedly reaped the benefits of releasing garments from their transeasonal collections earlier than usual.

Cue Clothing Company, which owned and operated the two brands, confirmed select garments had already landed at national department stores in a bid to counteract diminished stock levels from the Boxing Day and stocktake sales period. CEO Rod Levis said the first week of January had seen double digit sales growth at both stores but took a sharp dive in the second week.

"We think it was because the summer stock on sale had been completely depleted," he said. "We're seeing a steady uptake of our transeasonal range - and these are retailing at full price."

The latest report into apparel, accessories and footwear from Macquarie Research Equities indicated some retailers had introduced autumn stock early in a bid to stabilise margins from heavy discounting over the summer season. It noted upcoming winter ranges were expected to be "particularly soft" as consumers reined in their spending.

"Furthermore, David Jones and Myer are said to be running a very tight ship on their inventories. They have already cancelled their second summer orders for many labels and are holding off on other orders for top-up stock to see how winter opens."