Fusakle, a Slovak sock manufacturer, first began to offer its products at Bratislava's Good Market events several years ago. (source: TASR)
A popular sock manufacturer in Slovakia and the Czech Republic, Fusakle, is going through hard times.
“Coronavirus, war, inflation and rising input costs have had a strong negative impact on us,” the brand admitted July 18 on Facebook.
In the same post, the brand, which is owned by the Eric SK company, is asking customers to help save Fusakle.
Lack of money due to restrictions
The owner, Andrej Bartalos, is hoping people will positively respond to the call and give a hand.
“Our problem lies in the short-term lack of cash outside the main sock season, but at the same time in the higher stock of goods,” Bartalos told the tvnoviny.sk news website.
The firm that makes socks, underwear, and other pieces of clothing with fun and colourful prints gives jobs to several hundreds of people in Slovakia.
Bartalos went on to explain that, as a firm heavily reliant on cold-weather seasons, they did not manage to create a financial reserve big enough to cover the brand’s operation in the remaining months due to various coronavirus restrictions last winter, along with restrictions imposed on unvaccinated people earlier on.
Rising sales
Moreover, customers’ shopping behaviour has changed. The brand, whose history dates to 2015, had to close several stores and dismiss some workers in Slovakia and Czechia.
In December 2020, the firm ran 48 Fusakle stores in both countries.
The firm’s sales have been regularly increasing, totaling almost €9 million in 2021, but its profit fell from €1.3 million in 2020 to €663,000 last year, the Finstat.sk website claims.
Fusakle is not the first sock brand undergoing difficulties. Dedoles, which became known thanks to animated hamsters in its adverts, admitted to problems in April.
