(ULTA) 2023 Q4 法說會逐字稿

Good afternoon, and welcome to Ulta Beauty's conference call to discuss results for the fourth quarter 2023 earnings results. (Operator Instructions) As a reminder, this conference is being recorded.

下午好，歡迎參加 Ulta Beauty 的電話會議，討論 2023 年第四季的獲利結果。 （操作員指示）謹此提醒，本次會議正在錄製中。

It is now my pleasure to introduce Ms. Kiley Rawlins, Vice President of Investor Relations. Ms. Rawlins, please proceed.

現在我很高興向大家介紹投資者關係副總裁 Kiley Rawlins 女士。羅林斯女士，請繼續。

Thank you, Camilla. Good afternoon, everyone, and thank you for joining us for our discussion of our fourth quarter and fiscal 2023 results. Dave Kimbell, CEO, will begin the call with key highlights from our quarter and full year results and share our priorities for fiscal 2024. Then Scott Settersten, CFO, will review our quarterly financial results in more detail. And Paula Oyibo, SVP of Finance and incoming CFO, will discuss our fiscal 2024 outlook. After our prepared comments, we will open the call for questions. Kecia Steelman, President and Chief Operating Officer, will join us for the Q&A session.

謝謝你，卡米拉。大家下午好，感謝您加入我們對第四季和 2023 財年業績的討論。執行長 Dave Kimbell 將在電話會議開始時介紹我們季度和全年業績的主要亮點，並分享我們 2024 財年的優先事項。然後首席財務官 Scott Settersten 將更詳細地審查我們的季度財務業績。財務高級副總裁兼即將上任的財務長 Paula Oyibo 將討論我們的 2024 財年展望。在我們準備好意見後，我們將開始提問。總裁兼營運長 Kecia Steelman 將參加我們的問答環節。

As a reminder, our fourth quarter and full year fiscal results include an extra week as compared to fiscal 2022. Comments regarding comp sales are based on a comparable number of weeks from the prior year.

提醒一下，我們第四季度和全年的財務業績比 2022 財年多了一周。有關比較銷售的評論是基於與前一年相比的可比周數。

Before we begin, I'd like to remind you of the company's safe harbor language. The statements contained in this conference call, which are not historical facts, may be deemed to constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual future results may differ materially from those projected in such statements due to a number of risks and uncertainties, all of which are described in the company's filings with the SEC. We caution you not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of today, March 14, 2024. We have no obligation to update or revise our forward-looking statements, except as required by law, and you should not expect us to do so.

在開始之前，我想提醒您公司的安全港語言。本次電話會議中包含的陳述並非歷史事實，可能被視為構成1995 年《私人證券訴訟改革法案》含義內的前瞻性陳述。由於以下原因，未來的實際結果可能與此類陳述中預測的結果存在重大差異：許多風險和不確定性，所有這些都在該公司向 SEC 提交的文件中進行了描述。我們提醒您不要過度依賴這些前瞻性陳述，這些陳述僅截至今天（2024 年 3 月 14 日）。我們沒有義務更新或修改我們的前瞻性陳述，除非法律要求，並且您應該不指望我們這樣做。

Today's prepared remarks will be longer than usual. (Operator Instructions) As always, the IR team will be available for any follow-up questions after the call.

今天準備好的發言將比平時更長。 （操作員說明）與往常一樣，IR 團隊將在通話後回答任何後續問題。

Now I'll turn the call over to Dave. Dave?

現在我將把電話轉給戴夫。戴夫？

Thank you, Kiley, and good afternoon, everyone. We appreciate your interest in Ulta Beauty. The Ulta Beauty team delivered strong performance again this quarter with sales, operating margin and EPS all exceeding our internal expectations. Our traffic trends remained healthy. Our brand awareness reached all-time highs, and we drove strong member growth and retention.

謝謝你，凱利，大家下午好。我們感謝您對 Ulta Beauty 的興趣。 Ulta Beauty 團隊本季再次表現強勁，銷售額、營業利潤率和每股盈餘均超出我們的內部預期。我們的流量趨勢保持健康。我們的品牌知名度達到歷史最高水平，並推動了會員的強勁成長和保留。

For the quarter, net sales increased 10.2% to $3.6 billion. Operating profit was 14.5% of sales, and diluted EPS was $8.08 per share. Comparable sales increased 2.5%, driven by high single-digit growth from digital channels. Store comp sales increased slightly as we lapped high-teen growth last year.

本季淨銷售額成長 10.2%，達到 36 億美元。營業利潤佔銷售額的 14.5%，稀釋後每股收益為 8.08 美元。在數位通路高個位數成長的推動下，可比銷售額成長了 2.5%。由於去年我們實現了高青少年成長，商店銷售略有成長。

A thoughtfully curated assortment, engaging marketing strategies and new fulfillment and technology capabilities, enabled our teams to deliver mid-single-digit comp growth for the holiday period. Our holiday campaign this year centered around the gift is just the beginning, which underscored our belief in the power of beauty and Ulta Beauty. To support the campaign, we created relevant storytelling, which inspired authentic connection, leading to record breaking impressions, significant growth in share of voice and strong social engagement.

精心策劃的產品組合、引人入勝的行銷策略以及新的履行和技術能力，使我們的團隊能夠在假期期間實現中位數的複合成長。我們今年以禮物為中心的節日活動只是一個開始，這強調了我們對美麗和終極美麗的力量的信念。為了支持活動，我們創造了相關的故事講述，激發了真實的聯繫，帶來了破紀錄的印象、聲音份額的顯著增長和強大的社交參與。

These successful marketing efforts complemented our engaging in-store messaging and events, which focused on bringing beautytainment to guests and building the basket. Compelling content, combined with successful promotional strategies, drove strong new member acquisition and reactivation while increasing shopper -- shopping frequency and retention.

這些成功的行銷工作補充了我們引人入勝的店內資訊和活動，重點是為客人帶來美容娛樂並建立購物籃。引人注目的內容與成功的促銷策略相結合，推動了新會員的強勁獲取和重新激活，同時提高了購物者的購物頻率和保留率。

From a market share perspective, we continue to outpace the growth of the mass market for the 14 weeks ended February 3, 2024, according to Circana data. Our marketing share -- our market share of prestige beauty was more challenged as we lapped strong share growth in 2022 and continue to face pressure from the expansion of beauty -- distribution points in prestige. While competitive intensity has increased, we remain confident our differentiated model and sales-driving strategies will support our ability to capture additional market share over the long term.

根據 Circana 數據，從市佔率的角度來看，截至 2024 年 2 月 3 日的 14 週內，我們的成長速度持續超過大眾市場。我們的行銷份額——我們的高端美容市場份額受到了更大的挑戰，因為我們在 2022 年實現了強勁的份額增長，並繼續面臨美容——高端美容分銷點擴張的壓力。儘管競爭強度增加，但我們仍然相信，我們的差異化模式和銷售驅動策略將支持我們長期佔領更多市場份額的能力。

Turning to performance by category. Skincare was our fastest-growing category, delivering double-digit comp growth. Brands leading into relevant trends like BIOMA, Bubble and Good Molecules, which is exclusive to Ulta Beauty, delivered strong growth. Dermatologist-recommended brands also continue to appeal to consumers looking for efficacious products from trusted brands, fueling growth for La Roche-Posay, Dermalogica and Cetaphil.

轉向按類別劃分的性能。護膚品是我們成長最快的類別，實現了兩位數的複合成長。 BIOMA、Bubble 和 Ulta Beauty 獨有的 Good Molecules 等引領相關趨勢的品牌實現了強勁成長。皮膚科醫生推薦的品牌也繼續吸引那些尋求值得信賴品牌的有效產品的消費者，從而推動了理膚泉 (La Roche-Posay)、德美樂嘉 (Dermalogica) 和絲塔芙 (Cetaphil) 的成長。

The fragrance and bath category also delivered low double-digit comp growth again this quarter. Newness from Valentino, Burberry and Tree Hut and holiday gift sets from consumer favorites, YSL, Gucci and Billie Eilish contributed to strong performance. In addition, in January, we welcomed Sol de Janeiro, a Brazilian-inspired body care brand, to the Ulta Beauty family. Available in 700 stores and online, Sol de Janeiro has quickly become a guest favorite, driving growth in the category.

香水和沐浴類別本季也再次實現了兩位數的低成長率。 Valentino、Burberry 和 Tree Hut 的新產品以及深受消費者喜愛的 YSL、Gucci 和 Billie Eilish 的節日禮品套裝為強勁的業績做出了貢獻。此外，一月份，我們迎來了巴西風格的身體護理品牌 Sol de Janeiro 加入 Ulta Beauty 家族。 Sol de Janeiro 在 700 家商店和網上有售，迅速成為賓客的最愛，推動了該類別的成長。

Comp sales for the makeup category decreased in the low single-digit range. Softness in prestige cosmetics was partially offset by growth in mass makeup. Lip layering and blush proliferation continue to resonate with beauty enthusiasts. And brands leaning into these trends, including e.l.f., NYX and exclusive brand Juvia's Place, delivered strong growth. While prestige makeup was challenged in totality as we lapped strong growth last year, luxury brands, Dior, NATASHA DENONA and Pat McGrath continue to engage guests. And HOURGLASS, Tarte and Lancôme saw success with compelling holiday offerings.

化妝品類別的比較銷售額下降在較低的個位數範圍內。高檔化妝品的疲軟部分被大眾化妝品的成長所抵消。唇部層次感和腮紅擴散繼續引起美容愛好者的共鳴。 e.l.f.、NYX 和獨家品牌 Juvia's Place 等順應這些趨勢的品牌實現了強勁增長。儘管去年我們實現了強勁增長，高端彩妝受到了全面挑戰，但奢侈品牌 Dior、NATASHA DENONA 和 Pat McGrath 繼續吸引客人。 HOURGLASS、Tarte 和 Lancôme 憑藉引人注目的假期產品取得了成功。

Finally, comp sales for the hair care category decreased in the mid-single-digit range, primarily due to a decline in hair tools and the lapping of strong brand launches in 2022. Products focused on silane and foundational routines drove growth for professional brands Redken, Kenra and Biolage, and interest in hair health and treatments drove increased guest engagement with OUAI, Mielle and Divi. Newer brands, including Shark Beauty and LolaVie also resonated with guests.

最後，護髮類別的銷售額出現中個位數下降，主要是由於美髮工具的下降以及 2022 年強勢品牌推出的結束。專注於矽烷和基礎護理的產品推動了專業品牌 Redken 的成長、Kenra 和Biolage ，以及對頭髮健康和護理的興趣推動了賓客與OUAI、Mielle 和Divi 的互動。 Shark Beauty 和 LolaVie 等新品牌也引起了客人的共鳴。

Our services businesses delivered high single-digit growth for this quarter, driven by an increase in transactions. In addition to core styling services, specialty offerings, including extensions, hair treatments, texture services and ear piercing, drove strong engagement with guests.

在交易量增加的推動下，我們的服務業務本季實現了高個位數成長。除了核心造型服務外，接髮、頭髮護理、紋理服務和耳洞等特色服務也提高了與客人的互動度。

Turning now to the full year. Net sales for the year increased 9.8% to $11.2 billion. Comp sales increased 5.7%. Operating profit was 15% of sales. And diluted EPS increased 8.4% to a record $26.03 per share.

現在轉向全年。全年淨銷售額成長 9.8%，達到 112 億美元。比較銷售額成長 5.7%。營業利潤佔銷售額的15%。稀釋後每股收益成長 8.4%，達到創紀錄的每股 26.03 美元。

In addition to delivering strong financial results, we also made meaningful progress against our strategic priorities. Let me share highlights of advances made this year. Reflecting our efforts to drive growth through all things beauty, we strengthened our assortment with compelling newness and the expansion of strategic cross-category platforms. Using the consumer lens of how guests experience Ulta Beauty through all of our touch points, we estimate we maintained our share of the total U.S. beauty product industry.

除了實現強勁的財務業績外，我們還在策略重點方面取得了有意義的進展。讓我分享今年取得的進展的亮點。我們透過引人注目的新穎性和策略性跨品類平台的擴張來加強我們的品類，這反映了我們透過一切美麗事物推動成長的努力。從消費者的角度來看，客人如何透過我們的所有接觸點體驗 Ulta Beauty，我們估計我們保持了在美國美容產品行業的份額。

We launched customer favorite brands, including Dior, Beautycounter and Sol de Janeiro, and introduced emerging and exclusive brands, including Half Magic and Polite Society. We launched Luxury at Ulta Beauty, a strategically curated luxury beauty experience, and we expanded our cross-category platforms. We ended the year with more than half of our brand portfolio certified in at least one Conscious Beauty pillar and continue to drive greater awareness and discovery through unique sample kits and greater marketing support.

我們推出了消費者喜愛的品牌，包括 Dior、Beautycounter 和 Sol de Janeiro，並推出了新興和獨家品牌，包括 Half Magic 和 Polite Society。我們在 Ulta Beauty 推出了 Luxury at Ulta Beauty，這是一種策略策劃的奢華美容體驗，並擴展了我們的跨品類平台。去年年底，我們超過一半的品牌組合獲得了至少一個 Conscious Beauty 支柱的認證，並繼續透過獨特的樣品套件和更大的行銷支持來提高知名度和發現率。

We expanded our Black-owned or founded brands to 50 brands, and welcomed to the second cohort of BIPOC brands to our MUSE Accelerator program, a program designed to help early-stage BIPOC brands prepare for retail readiness. Additionally, we expanded the wellness shop to nearly all stores and refreshed the presentation to inspire and educate guests how to integrate wellness into their everyday lives.

我們將黑人擁有或創立的品牌擴大到 50 個，並歡迎第二批 BIPOC 品牌加入我們的 MUSE 加速器計劃，該計劃旨在幫助早期 BIPOC 品牌做好零售準備。此外，我們將健康商店擴展到幾乎所有商店，並更新了展示方式，以啟發和教育客人如何將健康融入他們的日常生活。

Turning to our second strategic pillar, All In Your World, we improved the guest experience across all of our touch points. We enhanced our physical footprint, opening 33 new stores and renovating or relocating 25 stores. Our services business delivered double-digit comp growth for the year, increasing frequency with members who already engaged in services while also introducing new members to our offering. And we drove greater experiential shopping through more in-store events focused on engaging and educating the guest about new products, new techniques and the latest beauty trends.

談到我們的第二個戰略支柱“一切盡在您的世界”，我們改善了所有接觸點的賓客體驗。我們擴大了實體店規模，開設了 33 家新店，並翻新或搬遷了 25 家店。我們的服務業務今年實現了兩位數的複合成長，增加了已經從事服務的會員的頻率，同時也為我們的產品引入了新會員。我們透過更多的店內活動推動了更多的體驗式購物，這些活動的重點是吸引和教育顧客新產品、新技術和最新的美容趨勢。

We also delivered significant improvements in our digital store experience. We successfully transitioned key guest-facing and commerce elements to a new modern architecture, delivering a fresh guest experience across both ulta.com and our app and providing our teams with new tools to optimize the guest experience. These enhancements, combined with our efforts to drive omnichannel member penetration, resulted in high single-digit growth in e-commerce sales and a 30% increase in member utilization of our app.

我們也顯著改善了數位商店體驗。我們成功地將關鍵的面向客人和商業元素轉變為新的現代架構，在 ulta.com 和我們的應用程式上提供全新的客人體驗，並為我們的團隊提供新工具來優化客人體驗。這些增強功能，再加上我們推動全通路會員滲透的努力，導致電子商務銷售額實現了高個位數成長，並且我們的應用程式的會員使用率增加了 30%。

To support stronger omnichannel experiences, we continue to improve our buy anywhere fill anywhere capabilities. We expanded same-day delivery to all stores and increased our ship-from-store capabilities to 450 stores. Between BOPIS, same-day delivery and ship-from-store, 37% of our digital orders this year were fulfilled by stores, up from 31% last year.

為了支援更強大的全通路體驗，我們不斷改進隨處購買、隨處填充的功能。我們將當日送達範圍擴大到所有商店，並將店內出貨能力增加到 450 家商店。在 BOPIS、當日送達和商店發貨方面，今年 37% 的數位訂單是由商店履行的，高於去年的 31%。

Finally, we strengthened our partnership with Target with the introduction of new brands and the opening of 155 additional Ulta Beauty at Target locations, ending the year with 510 shops. And we deepened guest engagement as reflected in growth of new member conversions, reengagement of labs guests and greater loyalty account linkage as well as increased bounce back to Ulta Beauty stores.

最後，我們透過引進新品牌並在 Target 地點另外開設 155 家 Ulta Beauty 店，加強了與 Target 的合作夥伴關係，到年底門市總數達到 510 家。我們加深了顧客參與度，這體現在新會員轉換率的成長、實驗室顧客的重新參與、更大的忠誠度帳戶關聯以及 Ulta Beauty 商店的反彈增加等方面。

Moving to our third strategic pillar, expanding and deepening guest engagement and loyalty by operating at the heart of the beauty community. Our marketing strategies, media investments and brand-building efforts resulted in record level unaided awareness, brand love and loyalty. To drive awareness and spark deeper connection engagement, we launched the Joy Project, a multiyear brand equity initiative to make beauty and the world a more joyful place.

轉向我們的第三個策略支柱，透過在美容社群的核心開展業務來擴大和加深賓客的參與度和忠誠度。我們的行銷策略、媒體投資和品牌建立努力帶來了創紀錄的無輔助意識、品牌喜愛度和忠誠度。為了提高認知度並激發更深層次的聯繫參與，我們推出了“歡樂項目”，這是一項為期多年的品牌資產計劃，旨在讓美麗和世界變得更加歡樂。

We expanded our social media engagement across multiple platforms with new trendsetting series and compelling content, which drove strong engagement, positive social sentiment and share of voice. And we achieved an important milestone. In December, we surpassed 1 million followers on TikTok, reinforcing our position as a social brand leader in beauty.

我們透過新的引領潮流的系列和引人注目的內容擴大了跨多個平台的社交媒體參與度，這推動了強烈的參與度、積極的社會情緒和聲音分享。我們實現了一個重要的里程碑。 12 月，我們在 TikTok 上的粉絲數量突破 100 萬，鞏固了我們作為美妝社交品牌領導者的地位。

With improved member retention, strong new member acquisition and healthy reactivation of lapsed members, we expanded our loyalty program by 8%, ending the year with 43.3 million loyalty members who shopped more frequently and spent more with us on average. Leading into the power of our best-in-class loyalty program in January, we rebranded the program to Ulta Beauty Rewards, featuring a stronger birthday experience and a refreshed look in stores and online and across social to drive greater awareness and deepen connection with our members. We are excited to reward our members with even more of what they love and showcase how much we appreciate them.

憑藉會員保留率的提高、新會員的強勁吸收以及流失會員的健康重新激活，我們的忠誠度計劃擴大了8%，截至年底，忠誠度會員數量達到4,330 萬名，他們平均購物頻率更高，在我們這裡的平均消費也較高。一月份，我們利用一流的忠誠度計劃的力量，將該計劃重新命名為Ulta Beauty Rewards，在商店、在線和社交媒體上提供更強大的生日體驗和煥然一新的外觀，以提高知名度並加深與我們的聯繫成員。我們很高興能用更多他們喜愛的東西來獎勵我們的會員，並展示我們對他們的感激之情。

Finally, UB Media, our retail media network, continued to deliver value. This year, we expanded the team, introduced new on-site products and launched an innovative omnichannel solution, which supports the measurement of campaigns across both digital and physical stores.

最後，我們的零售媒體網路 UB Media 繼續創造價值。今年，我們擴大了團隊，推出了新的現場產品，並推出了創新的全通路解決方案，該解決方案支援數位商店和實體商店的活動衡量。

Our fourth strategic pillar is to drive operational excellence and optimization to enable us to capture additional market share, fund guest experience enhancements and deliver future profitable growth.

我們的第四個策略支柱是推動卓越營運和優化，使我們能夠獲得更多的市場份額，為增強賓客體驗提供資金並實現未來的獲利成長。

I am very proud of what our teams accomplished in fiscal 2023, which was an ambitious year of foundational transformation for Ulta Beauty. We completed the retrofit of our Greenwood distribution center, began the retrofit of our Dallas distribution center, opened our Greer market fulfillment center and began work on our Bolingbrook market fulfillment center. We successfully transitioned our Jacksonville, Greer and Chambersburg distribution facilities and key merchandising processes to our new enterprise resource planning platform. And we converted key merchandising and commerce elements of our digital store to a new architecture while maintaining digital operations.

我對我們的團隊在 2023 財年所取得的成就感到非常自豪，這是 Ulta Beauty 實現根本性轉型的雄心勃勃的一年。我們完成了格林伍德配送中心的改造，開始改造達拉斯配送中心，開設了格里爾市場履行中心，並開始建造博林布魯克市場履行中心。我們成功地將傑克遜維爾、格里爾和錢伯斯堡的分銷設施和關鍵銷售流程轉移到新的企業資源規劃平台。我們將數位商店的關鍵行銷和商業元素轉換為新架構，同時保持數位營運。

We built a new enterprise data platform on Google Cloud infrastructure, establishing a modern ecosystem for future analytics and data-driven decision capabilities. And we completed our rollout of new POS systems, including mobile checkout in all stores.

我們在 Google Cloud 基礎架構上建立了新的企業資料平台，為未來的分析和資料驅動的決策能力建立了現代化的生態系統。我們完成了新 POS 系統的推出，包括所有商店的行動結帳。

Our teams enable our success, and we continue to invest and protect and cultivate our world-class culture and talent. This year, we introduced a new leadership competency model, redesigned our succession planning and talent review processes, expanded our associate development offering and completed enterprise-wide training to reinforce inclusivity and address unconscious bias. Associate retention improved across stores, distribution centers and our corporate team. And our 2023 culture survey results reinforce that our overall associate engagement remains strong.

我們的團隊使我們成功，我們繼續投資、保護和培養我們的世界級文化和人才。今年，我們引入了新的領導能力模型，重新設計了我們的繼任計畫和人才審查流程，擴大了我們的員工發展服務，並完成了全企業培訓，以加強包容性並解決無意識偏見。商店、配送中心和我們公司團隊的員工留任率都有所提高。我們的 2023 年文化調查結果表明，我們員工的整體敬業度依然強勁。

Finally, we made progress against our sixth strategic pillar to expand our environmental and social impact. We continue to improve the energy efficiency of stores through LED lighting retrofits, HVAC retrofits and energy management system upgrades and established 2030 emissions reduction goals approved by the Science Based Targets initiative.

最後，我們在擴大環境和社會影響的第六個策略支柱方面取得了進展。我們持續透過LED照明改造、暖通空調改造和能源管理系統升級來提高商店的能源效率，並制定了經科學目標倡議批准的2030年減排目標。

I am incredibly proud of what our teams accomplished in 2023. Our teams worked through unexpected challenges with agility and grace, and I'm grateful for their steadfast commitment to deliver value for all stakeholders while also enabling new capabilities for future growth.

我對我們的團隊在2023 年的成就感到無比自豪。我們的團隊敏捷而優雅地應對了意想不到的挑戰，我感謝他們堅定地致力於為所有利益相關者創造價值，同時為未來的成長提供新的能力。

As we look forward, we remain optimistic about the strength and resiliency of the beauty category. Over the last 3 years, the beauty category has experienced unprecedented growth. In 2024, we expect the category will remain healthy, but the growth will moderate to the mid-single-digit range, barring a major economic event.

展望未來，我們對美容類別的實力和彈性保持樂觀。過去三年，美容類別經歷了前所未有的成長。到 2024 年，我們預計該類別將保持健康，但成長將放緩至中個位數範圍，除非發生重大經濟事件。

Beauty is an attractive category, and competitive intensity continues to increase as channels blur and distribution expands. To protect and expand our leadership position, this year, we expect to advance our transformational agenda with the completion of key projects while also investing in core traffic and experienced drivers to strengthen engagement and enhance the guest experience.

美妝是個極具吸引力的品類，隨著通路的模糊和分銷的擴大，競爭強度不斷加劇。為了保護和擴大我們的領導地位，今年，我們希望透過完成關鍵項目來推進我們的轉型議程，同時投資於核心流量和經驗豐富的司機，以加強參與度並提升賓客體驗。

Starting with our go-to-market strategic pillars, we will innovate, evolve and expand All Things Beauty to excite and engage the beauty enthusiast. To strengthen our differentiated position, we will continue to expand our assortment with compelling and relevant brand launches like Sol de Janeiro and Charlotte Tilbury while also building exclusive emerging brands in our pipeline yet to be announced.

從我們進入市場的策略支柱開始，我們將創新、發展和擴展 All Things Beauty，以激發和吸引美容愛好者。為了加強我們的差異化地位，我們將繼續擴大我們的品種，推出引人注目的相關品牌，如 Sol de Janeiro 和 Charlotte Tilbury，同時也在我們尚未宣布的管道中打造獨家新興品牌。

In addition, this year, we will refresh Ulta Beauty Collection and position the brand as the cornerstone of our conscious beauty platform. And we will continue to enhance and amplify Luxury at Ulta Beauty and across category platforms.

此外，今年我們將更新 Ulta Beauty 系列，並將品牌定位為我們意識美容平台的基石。我們將持續增強和擴大 Ulta Beauty 和跨品類平台的奢華體驗。

Reflecting the importance of omnichannel engagement, we will invest in the guest experience across all of our touch points. We will further expand and enhance our physical footprint through additional new stores, remodels and relocations. In all stores, we will focus on enhancing the guest experience through friendly and helpful associates, fast and frictionless fulfillment and engaging services and events while also improving operational excellence through simplification, prioritization and optimizing our store teams.

為了體現全通路參與的重要性，我們將投資於所有接觸點的賓客體驗。我們將透過增加新店、改造和搬遷來進一步擴大和增強我們的實體足跡。在所有門市中，我們將專注於透過友好和樂於助人的員工、快速無摩擦的履行以及有吸引力的服務和活動來增強賓客體驗，同時透過簡化、優先排序和優化我們的門市團隊來提高卓越營運.

We also plan to drive growth across digital platforms as we leverage new capabilities to amplify brand launches and events, drive greater digital discovery and conversion and expand personalization across our digital platforms. And we will expand and enhance our partnership with Target as we support new Ulta Beauty at Target shops, evolve the assortment and deepen member engagement through targeted loyalty strategies.

我們還計劃利用新功能來擴大品牌發布和活動，推動更大的數位發現和轉化，並在我們的數位平台上擴展個人化，從而推動整個數位平台的成長。我們將擴大和加強與 Target 的合作夥伴關係，為 Target 商店推出新的 Ulta Beauty 提供支持，發展品種並透過有針對性的忠誠度策略加深會員參與度。

Operating at the heart of the beauty community, we intend to expand and deepen guest loyalty and engagement. To support long-term brand equity and drive deeper emotional connection with consumers, we will amplify the Joy Project with a continuous rhythm of engaging activations and drive community through an expanded creator network and affiliate program. We will support brand activations and events to drive new member acquisition while also leveraging our unique data insights to expand our targeting and member engagement. We will evolve our strategic promotional events to inspire and engage our beauty community, drive trips and encourage omnichannel engagement. And we plan to expand the impact and value of UB Media.

我們作為美容社群的核心開展業務，旨在擴大和加深賓客的忠誠度和參與度。為了支持長期品牌資產並推動與消費者更深層的情感聯繫，我們將透過持續的參與活動來擴大 Joy 項目，並透過擴大的創作者網絡和聯盟計劃來推動社區發展。我們將支持品牌活化和活動，以推動新會員的獲取，同時利用我們獨特的數據洞察來擴大我們的定位和會員參與度。我們將發展我們的策略促銷活動，以激勵和吸引我們的美容社區、推動旅行並鼓勵全通路參與。我們計劃擴大 UB Media 的影響力和價值。

Turning now to our operational excellence and optimization efforts. In fiscal 2024, we plan to complete many of the foundational elements of our transformational agenda, including Project SOAR, Digital Store and the upgrade of our data management capabilities. We also plan to invest in a new martech stack to support our personalization, retail media and overall e-commerce efforts.

現在談談我們的卓越營運和優化工作。在 2024 財年，我們計劃完成轉型議程的許多基本要素，包括 Project SOAR、數位商店和資料管理能力的升級。我們還計劃投資新的行銷技術堆棧，以支援我們的個人化、零售媒體和整體電子商務工作。

Our supply chain optimization journey will continue as our Bolingbrook market fulfillment center is completed, we continue to retrofit our Dallas distribution center, and we began the retrofit of our remaining full-service DCs in Chambersburg and Fresno. In addition, we intend to leverage our established continuous improvement capabilities to drive additional cost efficiencies with a priority on improving processes to reduce shrink.

隨著我們的Bolingbrook 市場履行中心的建成，我們的供應鏈優化之旅將繼續下去，我們將繼續改造我們的達拉斯配送中心，並開始改造我們位於錢伯斯堡和弗雷斯諾的剩餘全方位服務配送中心。此外，我們打算利用我們已建立的持續改進能力來提高成本效率，並優先改善流程以減少損耗。

To protect our culture and cultivate our talent while also enabling future business performance, we will continue to invest in our associates and team. We intend to focus on enrichments to the frontline associate experience, enhanced associate learning and development and deepen our DEI impact.

為了保護我們的文化、培養我們的人才，同時實現未來的業務績效，我們將繼續投資我們的員工和團隊。我們打算專注於豐富第一線員工的經驗、加強員工的學習和發展並加深我們的 DEI 影響。

Turning to our final strategic pillar. We intend to stay focused on our environmental and social impact. Building on progress made in 2023, we plan to implement our road map to achieve our emission reduction goals.

轉向我們的最後一個戰略支柱。我們打算繼續關注我們的環境和社會影響。我們計劃以 2023 年的進展為基礎，實施路線圖以實現減排目標。

Finally, I want to share an update on how we are approaching expansion opportunities outside the U.S. International expansion represents an incremental long-term opportunity for Ulta Beauty to extend our reach and leverage our differentiated value proposition. Today, we are excited to announce our planned market entry into Mexico.

最後，我想分享我們如何抓住美國以外的擴張機會的最新情況。國際擴張對 Ulta Beauty 來說是一個增量的長期機會，可以擴大我們的影響力並利用我們差異化的價值主張。今天，我們很高興地宣布我們計劃進入墨西哥市場。

The Mexican beauty market is sizable, growing and has significant beauty opportunity. Our research suggests there is a healthy awareness of the Ulta Beauty brand with local beauty enthusiasts, and we also see strong engagement in stores located in geographically adjacent markets. After extensive evaluation, we prioritized an asset-light partnership approach to enable us to move quickly. And I am excited to announce we have formed a joint venture with Axo, a highly experienced operator of global brands, to launch and operate Ulta Beauty in Mexico in 2025.

墨西哥美容市場規模龐大、不斷成長，並擁有巨大的美容機會。我們的研究表明，當地美容愛好者對 Ulta Beauty 品牌有良好的認知度，而且我們還發現地理位置鄰近市場的商店的參與度很高。經過廣泛評估後，我們優先考慮採用輕資產合作夥伴方式，以便我們能夠快速行動。我很高興地宣布，我們已與經驗豐富的全球品牌營運商 Axo 組建了一家合資企業，將於 2025 年在墨西哥推出和經營 Ulta Beauty。

As a result of this partnership approach, we do not expect this venture to be material to our financials in fiscal 2024. For competitive reasons, we're not sharing more details today, but we'll provide updates as appropriate.

由於這種合作方式，我們預計該合資企業不會對我們 2024 財年的財務狀況產生重大影響。出於競爭原因，我們今天不會分享更多細節，但我們將酌情提供更新。

In closing, the Ulta Beauty team delivered strong financial performance in fiscal 2023 while also achieving meaningful progress against our strategic priorities. As we look to 2024, I remain excited about the opportunity to enhance our market leadership and drive profitable growth. We operate in a growing category with strong consumer engagement, and I am confident that our proven differentiated business model, strategic priorities and outstanding, passionate team will enable us to move beauty forward in ways that create values for our shareholders and have a positive impact on our guests, associates and the communities we serve.

最後，Ulta Beauty 團隊在 2023 財年實現了強勁的財務業績，同時在我們的策略重點方面也取得了有意義的進展。展望 2024 年，我仍然對有機會增強我們的市場領導地位並推動獲利成長感到興奮。我們的業務領域不斷成長，消費者參與度很高，我相信，我們經過驗證的差異化商業模式、策略重點和出色、充滿熱情的團隊將使我們能夠推動美容事業向前發展，為股東創造價值，並對行業產生積極影響。我們的客人、同事和我們服務的社區。

Now as many of you know, this will be Scott's last earnings call. And I want to recognize and thank Scott for his many contributions to Ulta Beauty. He has been an exceptional partner to me and an inspirational leader for our entire team.

現在，正如你們許多人所知，這將是史考特的最後一次財報電話會議。我要感謝 Scott 對 Ulta Beauty 的許多貢獻。他是我的傑出合作夥伴，也是我們整個團隊的鼓舞人心的領導者。

Now today, you will also hear from Paula Oyibo, who will become our CFO on April 1. Paula joined Ulta Beauty in 2019 and is a dynamic finance executive with broad industry experience. She understands our business and our guests, and I know she will have a strong impact on our business going forward.

今天，您還將聽到 Paula Oyibo 的發言，她將於 4 月 1 日成為我們的財務長。Paula 於 2019 年加入 Ulta Beauty，是一位充滿活力的財務主管，擁有廣泛的行業經驗。她了解我們的業務和客人，我知道她將對我們未來的業務產生重大影響。

And now I will turn the call over to Scott for a discussion of our financial results. Scott?

現在我將把電話轉給史考特，討論我們的財務表現。史考特？

Thanks, Dave, and good afternoon, everyone. I will review our fourth quarter financial results before turning it over to Paula Oyibo, who will walk through the outlook for fiscal 2024.

謝謝戴夫，大家下午好。我將回顧我們第四季度的財務業績，然後將其交給 Paula Oyibo，她將概述 2024 財年的前景。

Financial results for the fourth quarter came in ahead of our expectations across the top and bottom line, reflecting strong holiday performance, growth in other revenue and healthy traffic trends as well as strong execution and focused expense management. Net sales for the quarter increased 10.2%, driven by 2.5% growth in comp sales, strong new store performance, a $25 million increase in other revenue as well as the impact of the 53rd week in fiscal 2023. Net sales for the 53rd week were $181.9 million. The growth in comp sales was driven by a 4.5% increase in transactions.

第四季度的財務表現在營收和利潤方面都超出了我們的預期，反映出強勁的假期業績、其他收入的成長和健康的流量趨勢，以及強大的執行力和集中的費用管理。受同業銷售成長 2.5%、新店業績強勁、其他收入增加 2,500 萬美元以及 2023 財年第 53 週影響的推動，本季淨銷售額增長 10.2%。第 53 週淨銷售額為1.819 億美元。交易量成長 4.5% 推動了公司銷售額的成長。

Average ticket declined 1.9%, driven by lower units per transaction, which were partially offset by higher average selling price. Reflecting a more normalized pricing environment, we estimate that product price increases contributed about 100 basis points to the overall comp increase.

由於每筆交易數量減少，平均票價下降了 1.9%，但平均售價上漲部分抵消了這一影響。我們估計，產品價格上漲對整體比較成長貢獻了約 100 個基點，反映出更標準化的定價環境。

Looking at the cadence of sales through the quarter, comp sales were solid in November and December, reflecting strong holiday performance. As expected, sales were more challenged in January as we lap the exceptional results from our strongest month in fiscal 2022.

從整個季度的銷售節奏來看，11 月和 12 月的同類產品銷售穩定，反映出強勁的假期表現。正如預期的那樣，1 月的銷售面臨更大的挑戰，因為我們取得了 2022 財年最強勁月份的優異業績。

During the quarter, we opened 13 new stores, relocated 2, remodeled 2 stores and closed 2 stores. For the quarter, gross margin increased 10 basis points to 37.7% of sales. The increase was driven by strong growth in other revenue, lower shipping rates and leverage of supply chain costs, which were largely offset by lower merchandise margin. Our efforts to grow other revenue continue to yield benefits with performance driven by increased credit card income, greater loyalty point redemptions and royalties earned through our Target partnership.

本季度，我們新開店 13 家，搬遷 2 家，改造 2 家門市，關閉 2 家門市。本季毛利率成長 10 個基點，佔銷售額的 37.7%。這一增長是由其他收入的強勁增長、較低的運費和供應鏈成本的槓桿所推動的，而這些增長在很大程度上被較低的商品利潤所抵消。我們增加其他收入的努力持續產生效益，業績成長得益於信用卡收入的增加、忠誠度積分兌換的增加以及透過我們的 Target 合作夥伴關係賺取的特許權使用費。

At the same time, we realized benefits from our supply chain optimization efforts as our carrier diversification strategy drove improved profitability. As anticipated, merchandise margin was pressured during the quarter, reflecting the lapping of benefits from price increases, increased promotionality as well as the impact from brand mix. These pressures were partially offset by ongoing category management efforts. The impact of promotional activity was above last year but continues to be well below 2019 levels.

同時，我們的承運人多元化策略提高了獲利能力，我們也從供應鏈優化工作中獲益。正如預期的那樣，本季商品利潤率受到壓力，反映出價格上漲、促銷力度加大以及品牌組合的影響所帶來的好處的消失。這些壓力被正在進行的品類管理工作部分抵銷。促銷活動的影響力高於去年，但仍遠低於 2019 年的水準。

Notably, shrink was flat during the quarter, slightly better than our expectations, reflecting the impact of our investments this year in training, labor and new fragrance fixtures. For the full year, shrink as a percentage of sales increased 40 basis points.

值得注意的是，本季的收縮率持平，略好於我們的預期，反映了我們今年在培訓、勞動力和新香水設備方面投資的影響。全年來看，萎縮佔銷售額的百分比增加了 40 個基點。

Moving to expenses. SG&A increased 7.6% to $820 million. Overall, SG&A spend was better than planned due to focused expense management and a shift in timing of certain strategic investments. As a percentage of sales, SG&A decreased 50 basis points to 23.1% compared to 23.6% last year, primarily due to lower incentive compensation and leverage of marketing expenses and store payroll and benefits, which was partially offset by deleverage of corporate overhead and store expenses.

轉向開支。 SG&A 成長 7.6%，達到 8.2 億美元。整體而言，由於集中的費用管理和某些策略投資時機的轉變，SG&A 支出優於計畫。 SG&A 佔銷售額的百分比下降了50 個基點，至23.1%，而去年為23.6%，這主要是由於激勵薪酬以及營銷費用和商店工資和福利的槓桿率降低，但企業管理費用和商店費用的去槓桿化部分抵消了這種影響。

Incentive compensation drove 40 basis points of leverage in the quarter, reflecting operational performance that was more in line with our internal targets compared to last year's significant outperformance. In addition to the impact of higher sales, marketing expense leverage was driven by the timing of advertising expenses, while store payroll and benefits leverage reflected fewer payroll hours per store, which more than offset ongoing wage rate pressures.

激勵性薪酬推動本季槓桿率上升 40 個基點，反映出與去年顯著優異的業績相比，營運績效更符合我們的內部目標。除了銷售額增加的影響外，行銷費用槓桿也受到廣告費用時間的推動，而商店工資和福利槓桿則反映出每家商店的工資發放時間減少，這足以抵消持續的工資壓力。

Offsetting these benefits, corporate overhead expense deleveraged during the quarter, primarily reflecting investments related to our strategic priorities, including Project SOAR, Digital Store and other IT capabilities and UB Media. For the full year, we invested $62 million of incremental spend to support our strategic initiatives, which was at the lower end of our expectations, reflecting the shift in timing of certain projects into 2024.

本季企業管理費用去槓桿化，主要反映了與我們的策略重點相關的投資，包括 Project SOAR、數位商店和其他 IT 能力以及 UB Media，抵消了這些收益。全年，我們投資了 6,200 萬美元的增量支出來支持我們的策略舉措，這處於我們預期的下限，反映出某些項目的時間安排已轉移到 2024 年。

Finally, store expenses also deleveraged, driven by investments to support merchandising initiatives as well as ongoing inflationary pressures across the business. Operating margin was 14.5% of sales compared to 13.9% last year. The company's tax rate decreased to 24.2% compared to 24.6% in the fourth quarter last year. The lower effective tax rate is primarily due to benefits from a decrease in state income taxes. Diluted GAAP earnings per share increased 21% to $8.08 compared to $6.68 last year. The EPS impact of the 53rd week was $0.46.

最後，在支持銷售計劃的投資以及整個企業持續的通膨壓力的推動下，商店支出也去槓桿化了。營業利益率佔銷售額的 14.5%，而去年為 13.9%。該公司的稅率由去年第四季的24.6%下降至24.2%。有效稅率較低主要是由於州所得稅減少的好處。稀釋後 GAAP 每股收益從去年的 6.68 美元增加 21% 至 8.08 美元。第 53 週對 EPS 的影響為 0.46 美元。

To recap the full year, net sales increased 9.8% to $11.2 billion. Comp sales increased 5.7%, driven by a 7.4% increase in transactions and a 1.5% decrease in average ticket. We estimate that product price increases contributed about 200 basis points to the overall comp increase for the year. Operating profit was 15% of sales, with deleverage coming evenly from gross margin and SG&A. And diluted EPS increased 8.4% to a record $26.03 per share.

回顧全年，淨銷售額成長 9.8%，達到 112 億美元。由於交易量成長 7.4% 和平均票價下降 1.5%，Comp 銷售額成長 5.7%。我們估計，產品價格上漲對今年整體比較成長的貢獻約為 200 個基點。營業利潤佔銷售額的 15%，去槓桿化平均來自於毛利率和 SG&A。稀釋後每股收益成長 8.4%，達到創紀錄的每股 26.03 美元。

Moving on to the balance sheet and cash flow statement. Total inventory increased 8.6% to $1.7 billion compared to $1.6 billion last year. In addition to the impact of 30 net new stores, the increase reflects inventory to support new brand launches, the new market fulfillment center in Greer, South Carolina as well as the impact of product cost increases.

接下來是資產負債表和現金流量表。總庫存增加 8.6%，達到 17 億美元，去年為 16 億美元。除了 30 家淨新店的影響之外，這一增長還反映了支持新品牌發布的庫存、位於南卡羅來納州格里爾的新市場履行中心以及產品成本增加的影響。

Our well-established business model continues to generate significant cash from operations, including nearly $1.5 billion in fiscal 2023. Our capital allocation approach remains consistent. Our first priority is to reinvest in our business to drive future growth, followed by returning excess cash to our shareholders.

我們完善的業務模式繼續從營運中產生大量現金，包括 2023 財年近 15 億美元。我們的資本分配方法保持一致。我們的首要任務是對我們的業務進行再投資以推動未來的成長，然後將多餘的現金回饋給我們的股東。

In fiscal 2023, we invested $435 million in capital expenditures, including approximately $178 million for new stores, remodels and merchandise fixtures; $124 million for IT; $73 million for supply chain; and $60 million for store maintenance and other. Depreciation for the year was $244 million compared to $241 million last year and primarily reflects the ongoing shift of IT investments from capital to cloud expense.

2023 財年，我們投資了 4.35 億美元的資本支出，其中約 1.78 億美元用於新店、改造和商品固定設施； 1.24 億美元用於 IT； 7300萬美元用於供應鏈； 6000萬美元用於商店維護和其他費用。今年的折舊額為 2.44 億美元，而去年為 2.41 億美元，主要反映了 IT 投資從資本支出持續轉向雲端支出。

During the fourth quarter, we repurchased 352,000 shares at a cost of $159 million, bringing total share repurchase to 1 billion for the full year. Since launching our stock buyback program in 2014, we've purchased more than 18 million shares at a weighted average price of $313, effectively returning $5.8 billion to shareholders while continuing to invest in strategic growth drivers.

第四季度，我們回購了 352,000 股股票，耗資 1.59 億美元，使全年股票回購總額達到 10 億股。自 2014 年啟動股票回購計畫以來，我們已以 313 美元的加權平均價格購買了超過 1,800 萬股股票，有效地向股東返還了 58 億美元，同時繼續投資於戰略成長動力。

Before I turn the call over to Paula, I want to take a moment to express my sincere gratitude to our teams for delivering these strong results for our shareholders this year and throughout my tenure with Ulta Beauty. It has been an honor to serve as the company's CFO and a privilege to lead and serve alongside such talented associates. I'm excited to pass the baton to Paula, who I know will be an excellent leader and steward of Ulta Beauty's business going forward.

在將電話轉給 Paula 之前，我想花點時間向我們的團隊表示衷心感謝，感謝他們今年以及我在 Ulta Beauty 的整個任期內為我們的股東帶來了這些強勁的業績。我很榮幸擔任公司的財務官，也很榮幸能夠與這些才華橫溢的員工一起領導和服務。我很高興將接力棒交給 Paula，我知道她將成為 Ulta Beauty 業務未來的優秀領導者和管理者。

Thank you, Scott. I am honored and humbled to be assuming the position of Chief Financial Officer at Ulta Beauty, and I am excited to lead our talented finance organization and to drive Ulta Beauty's next phase of growth. I want to thank Scott for his mentorship over the years and wish him all the best in his well-deserved retirement. I look forward to working with those on the call today and meeting those of you I have not yet met.

謝謝你，斯科特。我很榮幸也受寵若驚地擔任 Ulta Beauty 財務官，我很高興能夠領導我們才華橫溢的財務組織並推動 Ulta Beauty 下一階段的成長。我要感謝斯科特多年來的指導，並祝福他在當之無愧的退休生活中一切順利。我期待與今天參加電話會議的人員一起工作，並會見那些我尚未見過的人。

Before we talk about our expectations for fiscal 2024, I want to share 2 capital allocation update. First, yesterday, we amended our revolver agreement to $800 million and extended the term to 2029. Reflecting the current rate environment, we reduced the size of the revolver to lower the impact of higher fees but retain flexibility to upsize the capacity if needed. Second, having essentially completed the authorization announced in March 2022, today, we announced a new share repurchase authorization for $2 billion.

在我們談論對 2024 財年的預期之前，我想分享 2 個資本配置更新。首先，昨天，我們將左輪手槍協議修改為8 億美元，並將期限延長至2029 年。根據目前的費率環境，我們縮小了左輪手槍的規模，以降低費用上漲的影響，但保留了在需要時擴大容量的靈活性。其次，在基本完成 2022 年 3 月宣布的授權後，今天我們宣布了 20 億美元的新股回購授權。

Now turning to our outlook for fiscal 2024. We expect net sales will be in the range of $11.7 billion to $11.8 billion with comp sales growth expected to be between 4% and 5%. We anticipate comp growth will be in the low single-digit range in the first half and then increase to mid-single-digit growth in the second half of the year. We expect operating margin will be between 14% and 14.3% of sales, primarily driven by SG&A deleverage as we complete many of the foundational elements of our transformational agenda and move to investments to enable growth, operationalize the investments made in 2023, manage ongoing wage pressures and support core traffic and experienced drivers.

現在轉向我們對 2024 財年的展望。我們預計淨銷售額將在 117 億美元至 118 億美元之間，公司銷售額成長率預計在 4% 至 5% 之間。我們預計上半年的複合成長率將處於低個位數範圍，然後在下半年升至中個位數成長。我們預計營業利潤率將在銷售額的14% 至14.3% 之間，這主要是由SG&A 去槓桿化推動，因為我們完成了轉型議程的許多基本要素，並轉向投資以促進成長、實施2023 年的投資、管理持續工資壓力並支持核心交通和經驗豐富的駕駛員。

In total, we expect SG&A growth for the year will moderate into the high single-digit range from 12.5% growth in fiscal 2023. We expect SG&A growth in the first half will be in the low double-digit range as we annualize investment spend in 2023 and complete key milestones of our transformational agenda and then slow to mid-single-digit growth in the second half. We expect gross margin for the year will be down modestly as lower merchandise margin and deleverage of supply chain costs are partially offset by other revenue.

總的來說，我們預計今年的 SG&A 成長將從 2023 財年的 12.5% 放緩至高個位數範圍。我們預計上半年的 SG&A 成長將在低兩位數範圍內，因為我們將投資支出年化2023 年，完成我們轉型議程的關鍵里程碑，然後在下半年放緩至中個位數成長。我們預計今年的毛利率將小幅下降，因為較低的商品利潤率和供應鏈成本的去槓桿化被其他收入部分抵消。

Our assumptions result in a diluted earnings guidance in the range of $26.20 to $27 per share. We are planning EPS to decline in the first half and then accelerate to high single-digit growth in the second half of the year. For modeling purposes, we expect operating margin to be the most challenged in the first quarter with meaningful deleverage across SG&A and gross margins.

我們的假設導致稀釋後獲利指引在每股 26.20 美元至 27 美元之間。我們計劃每股收益在上半年下降，然後在下半年加速至個位數高成長。出於建模目的，我們預計第一季營業利潤率將面臨最大的挑戰，SG&A 和毛利率將進行有意義的去槓桿化。

Finally, we plan to spend between $415 million and $490 million in CapEx, including approximately $270 million to $282 million for new stores, remodels and merchandise fixtures; $120 million to $155 million for supply chain and IT; and $45 million to $53 million for store maintenance and other. We expect depreciation for the year will be between $275 million and $280 million.

最後，我們計劃在資本支出上花費 4.15 億至 4.9 億美元，其中包括約 2.7 億至 2.82 億美元用於新店、改造和商品固定裝置； 1.2億至1.55億美元用於供應鏈和IT； 4500萬至5300萬美元用於商店維護及其他費用。我們預計今年的折舊將在 2.75 億美元至 2.8 億美元之間。

We believe the outlook for the beauty category is bright, and we are confident our strategic framework and strong financial foundation will enable us to drive long-term growth and shareholder returns.

我們相信美容品類的前景是光明的，我們相信我們的策略框架和強大的財務基礎將使我們能夠推動長期成長和股東回報。

Before we take your questions, I want to announce that we plan to host an investor event here in Chicago this fall to share our longer-term plans and outlook. We will share more of the logistical details later this summer.

在回答您的問題之前，我想宣布，我們計劃今年秋天在芝加哥舉辦投資者活動，以分享我們的長期計劃和前景。我們將在今年夏天晚些時候分享更多後勤細節。

And now I'll turn the call back over to our operator to moderate the Q&A.

現在我會將電話轉回給我們的接線生以主持問答。

(Operator Instructions) Our first question comes from the line of Rupesh Parikh with Oppenheimer.

（操作員說明）我們的第一個問題來自 Rupesh Parikh 和 Oppenheimer 的線路。

Also, Scott, best wishes on retirement. So I wanted to start out just with the prestige cosmetics category. As you look towards this fiscal year, we're seeing a lot of newness in stores. You're moving past, I think, pretty difficult comparisons. So just curious if you guys expect to return to share gains within the prestige cosmetics category.

另外，斯科特，祝你退休順利。所以我想從高檔化妝品類別開始。展望本財年，我們將在商店中看到很多新事物。我認為你已經超越了相當困難的比較。所以只是好奇你們是否希望回歸分享高端化妝品類別的收益。

Rupesh, thanks for your question, and thanks for calling out, Scott, well deserved. Yes. I'll say on makeup, and I'll even speak a little bit more broadly across all our categories, we are focused on driving growth in every part of our business. Our makeup business in 2023, particularly in the second half, we saw healthy growth on the mass side and more challenges on the prestige side. So we have a strategy to drive performance within all parts of our makeup business. It is our largest segment and obviously important in the beauty category.

魯佩什，謝謝你的提問，也謝謝你的呼喚，史考特，當之無愧。是的。我想說的是，關於化妝品，我甚至會更廣泛地談論我們所有的類別，我們專注於推動我們業務各個部分的成長。 2023年我們的彩妝業務，特別是下半年，我們看到大眾端健康成長，但高端端面臨更多挑戰。因此，我們制定了一項策略來推動化妝品業務各個部分的績效。這是我們最大的細分市場，在美容類別中顯然很重要。

Our efforts are holistic. We've got a number of new brands that we believe will either already are or will add value to the category, including the launch of Charlotte Tilbury, which just rolled out recently, also exclusive brands like Half Magic and Polite Society, Rabanne, innovation from our existing big brands that we'll continue to see that have been so important to our business like Tarte and Benefit and Clinique and Lancôme on the prestige side.

我們的努力是全面的。我們擁有許多新品牌，我們相信這些品牌已經或將會為該類別增加價值，包括最近剛推出的 Charlotte Tilbury，還有 Half Magic 和 Polite Society、Rabanne、innovation 等獨家品牌從我們現有的大品牌中，我們將繼續看到對我們的業務如此重要的品牌，如Tarte 和Benefit、Clinique 和Lancôme 在聲望方面。

Our luxury proposition really launched last year to -- with a lot of success. And as we continue to grow and build our presence in that space, we see that as a contributor. And then through our holistic efforts, we're going to try to find ways to lean into the important trends. Makeup is -- of course, has a key trend component. So whether it's blush, shade, proliferation, lip layering, matte makeup, nail is an important opportunity, we're going to continue to drive that.

我們的奢侈品主張於去年真正推出，並且取得了巨大成功。隨著我們在該領域不斷發展和建立影響力，我們將其視為貢獻者。然後，透過我們的整體努力，我們將嘗試找到適應重要趨勢的方法。當然，化妝是關鍵的趨勢組成部分。因此，無論是腮紅、陰影、擴散、唇部分層、啞光彩妝、美甲都是一個重要的機會，我們將繼續推動這一趨勢。

And the last thing I'd say is we continue to revamp and elevate our events that play an important role in mass migration, the number of mass consumers that we've acquired over the years, continuing to introduce them to prestige for the first time. So we're focused on driving that business. We are confident over time that we'll be able to deliver the growth that we expect, and we're working hard to deliver across all parts of that business.

我要說的最後一件事是，我們將繼續改進和提升我們的活動，這些活動在大規模移民、我們多年來獲得的大眾消費者數量方面發揮著重要作用，並繼續首次向他們介紹威望。因此，我們專注於推動該業務。我們相信，隨著時間的推移，我們將能夠實現預期的成長，並且我們正在努力實現該業務的所有部分。

Our next question comes from the line of Korinne Wolfmeyer with Piper Sandler.

我們的下一個問題來自 Korinne Wolfmeyer 和 Piper Sandler。

Congrats on the quarter. I'd like to touch a little bit on the decision to enter into Mexico. I mean previously, we've been talking about potentially going into Canada. Just would like to understand your thought process of going or doing Mexico versus Canada. And what kind of opportunity do you really see there over the longer term?

恭喜本季。我想談談進入墨西哥的決定。我的意思是之前，我們一直在討論進入加拿大的可能性。只是想了解您去或做墨西哥與加拿大的思考過程。從長遠來看，您真正看到了什麼樣的機會？

I'm just going to say we're really excited about this announcement and really, as I said in the prepared remarks, see Mexico as a great opportunity that's tailor-made for the Ulta Beauty experience. Kecia is leading this effort among many things that she does. So I'm going to ask Kecia to give some more color on it.

我只想說，我們對這一消息感到非常興奮，正如我在準備好的演講中所說，我們將墨西哥視為一個為 Ulta Beauty 體驗量身定制的絕佳機會。 Kecia 在她所做的許多事情中都在領導這項工作。所以我要請 Kecia 給它更多的色彩。

Yes, absolutely. Well, after careful evaluation of many market opportunities, we really felt like the Mexican market is the next step for Ulta Beauty for us to have this partnership with Axo. And we're really excited about this. I know that the future is going to be really bright in this partnership. We've spent a lot of time with their teams from a cultural perspective, also just even from the best-in-class performance with global partners that they've brought to the Mexico consumer -- the Mexican consumer.

是的，一點沒錯。嗯，在仔細評估了許多市場機會之後，我們確實覺得墨西哥市場是 Ulta Beauty 與 Axo 合作的下一步。我們對此感到非常興奮。我知道這種夥伴關係的未來將會非常光明。我們從文化角度與他們的團隊花了很多時間，甚至從他們為墨西哥消費者帶來的全球合作夥伴的一流表現來看。

Our border stores are performing really, really well. And I just think it's the next natural step for us as we continue to expand internationally. So we are really excited about this. Again, we are planning to be operational in 2025. The cost of this is built into the guidance in '24. So we don't feel like it's very material. But we're super excited and feel that Axo is the right partner for us to launch in this next new territory for us.

我們的邊境商店表現非常非常好。我只是認為，隨著我們繼續向國際擴張，這是我們自然而然的下一步。所以我們對此感到非常興奮。同樣，我們計劃在 2025 年投入營運。其成本已納入 24 年的指導中。所以我們不覺得它很物質。但我們非常興奮，並認為 Axo 是我們在下一個新領域推出的合適合作夥伴。

Our next question comes from the line of Ike Boruchow with Wells Fargo.

我們的下一個問題來自艾克·博魯喬 (Ike Boruchow) 與富國銀行 (Wells Fargo) 的對話。

This is Juliana on for Ike. I just wanted to ask in regards to thoughts on the beauty categories moving forward, particularly the balance of prestige and mass, and maybe in addition, how we can see that driving merchandise margin given the benefit that we've seen.

這是艾克的朱莉安娜。我只是想問一下對美容品類未來發展的看法，特別是聲譽和大眾之間的平衡，也許除此之外，考慮到我們已經看到的好處，我們如何才能看到推動商品利潤的增長。

Well, for the overall category, as I mentioned in the remarks, we're fortunate to be in a category that continues to be healthy, that is highly connected to our consumers, a high level of engagement, that there's an emotional connection that's driving the category and has been for a very long time, and then certainly coming out of COVID, has been exceptionally strong.

嗯，對於整個類別，正如我在評論中提到的，我們很幸運能夠處於一個持續健康的類別中，與我們的消費者高度聯繫，高度參與，有一種情感聯繫在推動這個類別已經存在了很長一段時間，而且肯定是在新冠疫情之後，一直異常強勁。

All indicators, as we look at the consumer landscape, is a continued level of engagement. When we look into this year, though, of course, we are evaluating and anticipating and preparing for consumer behavior to continue to evolve. We know there's external pressures on the consumer. We know we're entering into a dynamic time with an election year.

當我們觀察消費者格局時，所有指標都是持續的參與程度。當然，當我們展望今年時，我們正在評估、預測並為消費者行為的持續發展做好準備。我們知道消費者面臨外部壓力。我們知道我們正在進入一個充滿活力的選舉年。

And what we've seen in this category is strong growth, but as expected, some moderation in that growth. Still above historical trends but some moderation. Simply put, we think consumers, highly engaged in the category but still -- and still passionate about the category but will continue to be thoughtful in all of their spending. But fortunately, we know that beauty is an important one.

我們在這一類別中看到的是強勁的成長，但正如預期的那樣，成長有所放緩。仍高於歷史趨勢，但有所放緩。簡而言之，我們認為消費者對該類別高度參與，但仍對該類別充滿熱情，但將繼續在所有支出中深思熟慮。但幸運的是，我們知道美麗是很重要的。

And as a reminder, Ulta Beauty is well positioned to manage through really any kind of economic disruption or challenge given our unique portfolio, all price points, all categories that allow us to meet our consumers' needs if there is a time that they feel more pressure or have other changes. But overall, category healthy. Paula, as it relates to any potential margin changes?

提醒一下，鑑於我們獨特的產品組合、所有價位、所有類別，Ulta Beauty 完全有能力應對任何類型的經濟混亂或挑戰，這些都使我們能夠滿足消費者的需求（如果有時間的話）壓力或有其他變化。但整體而言，品類健康。 Paula，因為這與任何潛在的利潤變化有關？

Yes. What I would say is our merchandise margin, I would remind, we are meaningfully higher and better, our merchandise margin since 2019. And really that has a lot to do with we are a much healthier business now, and we have -- our mix in our business between our categories as well as prestige and mass through category performance efforts over the years has really helped us be able to be flexible as the consumer shifts between various categories as well as between mass and prestige. And so we believe that our -- we're able to manage that dynamic.

是的。我想說的是我們的商品利潤率，我想提醒一下，自2019 年以來，我們的商品利潤率明顯更高、更好。這實際上與我們現在的業務更加健康有很大關係，而且我們擁有－我們的組合在我們的業務中，多年來透過品類績效努力在我們的品類以及聲譽和大眾之間進行調整，確實幫助我們能夠在消費者在不同品類之間以及大眾和聲譽之間轉換時保持彈性。因此，我們相信我們能夠管理這種動態。

Our next question comes from the line of Susan Anderson with Canaccord Genuity.

我們的下一個問題來自 Canaccord Genuity 的 Susan Anderson。

I wanted to maybe ask about the store expansion. It looks like it picks up this year. I guess how should we think about timing throughout the year? And then also, should we expect these to be the full-size stores? Or are you going to roll out any of the smaller test stores that you've been looking at? And then also, just how do you think this helps to maybe win back some of the share from other competition?

我想問一下關於商店擴建的事情。看來今年有回升。我想我們應該如何考慮全年的時間安排？然後，我們是否應該期望這些是全尺寸商店？或者您打算推出您一直在尋找的任何較小的測試商店嗎？另外，您認為這如何有助於從其他競爭對手中贏回一些份額？

Thanks, Susan. We are planning to open between 60 and 65 net new stores in fiscal 2024. That puts our growth between the 2-year period at 90 to 95, which is generally in line with the 100 that we had communicated. And so our thinking hasn't materially changed there.

謝謝，蘇珊。我們計劃在 2024 財年淨開設 60 至 65 家新店。這使得我們在兩年內的成長達到 90 至 95 家，這與我們先前溝通的 100 家基本一致。所以我們的想法並沒有實質的改變。

We remain confident in our ability to open and operate between 1,500 and 1,700 traditional Ulta Beauty freestanding locations in the U.S. And we're optimistic the small format store prototype could give us an opportunity for additional growth, as does the partnership with Target and then similarly as we're excited about the additional opportunity with our international expansion into Mexico. Related to the small geographies, we are planning to open 10 small store formats in 2024.

我們對在美國開設和經營 1,500 至 1,700 家傳統 Ulta Beauty 獨立店的能力仍然充滿信心。我們樂觀地認為，小型商店原型可以給我們帶來額外增長的機會，與 Target 的合作也是如此，然後類似的因為我們對墨西哥國際擴張帶來的額外機會感到興奮。與小地域相關，我們計劃在 2024 年開設 10 家小型商店業態。

Our next question comes from the line of Ashley Helgans with Jefferies.

我們的下一個問題來自 Ashley Helgans 和 Jefferies 的對話。

So we just wanted to ask for an update on UB Media. Anything you can share about the number of brands that are currently on the platform, maybe demand for the platform? And then any color to help us model as UB starts to scale?

所以我們只是想問 UB Media 的最新情況。您可以分享一下目前該平台上的品牌數量嗎？也許是對該平台的需求？當 UB 開始規模化時，有什麼顏色可以幫助我們建模呢？

Yes. We're really pleased with the progress that we've made. As a reminder for those on the call, this really does represent a way for us to generate positive impact on our business by leveraging the first-party data and insights that we have in partnering with our brands. We're not sharing, we haven't shared and we don't plan to share specific on a number of brands or even specific financial impact at this time.

是的。我們對所取得的進展感到非常滿意。提醒那些參加電話會議的人，這確實代表了我們透過利用與我們的品牌合作時擁有的第一方數據和見解對我們的業務產生積極影響的一種方式。我們不會分享，我們還沒有分享，目前也不打算分享一些具體的品牌，甚至具體的財務影響。

But what I will say is we're really pleased with the progress that we've made in 2023 and are confident that we'll continue to grow this part of the business. The network that we have offers advertising access via off-site display, video, social influencers as well as on-site sponsored products. Our on-site display inventory is one of the actually new core offerings that we activated just in 2023.

但我要說的是，我們對 2023 年的進展感到非常滿意，並且有信心繼續發展這部分業務。我們擁有的網路透過場外展示、影片、社交影響者以及現場贊助產品提供廣告存取。我們的現場展示庫存實際上是我們在 2023 年啟動的新核心產品之一。

So we've got a full suite of ad inventory experiences, value-added services. And as I said, we're confident in its impact going forward. And the support, engagement, reaction from brands has been very positive. As you know, the advertising world continues to evolve. So the value that we can bring through first-party data with 43 million beauty enthusiasts is very meaningful. And we continue to work with our brand partners, and they have demonstrated to us that they see a positive return. And we're continuing to grow that business.

因此，我們擁有一整套廣告庫存體驗和增值服務。正如我所說，我們對其未來的影響充滿信心。品牌的支持、參與和反應都是非常正面的。如您所知，廣告世界不斷發展。所以我們透過4,300萬美妝愛好者的第一方數據所能帶來的價值是非常有意義的。我們繼續與我們的品牌合作夥伴合作，他們向我們證明他們看到了積極的回報。我們正在繼續發展該業務。

Our next question comes from the line of Olivia Tong with Raymond James.

我們的下一個問題來自 Olivia Tong 和 Raymond James 的對話。

Congrats, Scott, and looking forward to working with you, Paula. I wanted to ask you a little bit about your thoughts on new product contribution this year because it does seem like certainly starting off with the momentum with Charlotte Tilbury and Sol de Janeiro. We did some store tours in New York recently, and the team is very energized around these brands. So was wondering if you could talk about contribution this year versus previous years and then helping us understand sort of -- I think you mentioned Sol de Janeiro that -- a portion of the doors. Maybe can you give the same statistics for Charlotte Tilbury?

恭喜斯科特，並期待與您合作，保拉。我想問一下您對今年新產品貢獻的看法，因為看起來確實是從 Charlotte Tilbury 和 Sol de Janeiro 的勢頭開始的。我們最近在紐約參觀了一些商店，團隊對這些品牌充滿了活力。所以想知道你是否可以談談今年與往年的貢獻，然後幫助我們理解——我想你提到了《索爾·德·熱內盧》——一部分門。也許你能為夏洛特·蒂爾伯里提供相同的統計數據？

And then on the margin, I would just love a little bit more detail in terms of what's driving the margin outlook to the 14% to 14.3% end of the longer-term range, whether there's anything, sort of higher investment or what have you that's sort of dragging that to that end of the range?

然後在利潤方面，我只是想更詳細地了解是什麼推動利潤率前景達到長期範圍的 14% 至 14.3%，是否有什麼，更高的投資或者你有什麼這有點把它拖到了範圍的那一端？

Okay. Thanks, Olivia. Yes, I'll talk about new product at our newness pipeline, and then Paula can pick up on your question around margins. So we're -- well, first, I'll say newness is always a critical part of our business and historically has been between 20% to 30% of our sales. And that's an important part of the category and one of the best things about the category. There is a large desire from our beauty enthusiast guests from our members to discover what's new and exciting across all of our categories.

好的。謝謝，奧莉維亞。是的，我將討論我們的新產品管道中的新產品，然後保拉可以回答您有關利潤的問題。所以我們——嗯，首先，我要說的是，新穎性始終是我們業務的關鍵部分，歷史上一直占我們銷售額的 20% 到 30%。這是該類別的重要組成部分，也是該類別最好的事情之一。我們的會員中的美容愛好者客人非常渴望發現我們所有類別的新鮮和令人興奮的東西。

And so we do have what I believe is a well-balanced portfolio of new brands between big, recognized brands like Charlotte Tilbury as well as a steady stream of emerging brands that are unique or exciting within the Ulta Beauty environment. And so we don't -- we're not going to give any specific numbers about newness this year versus last year. But I will give you a couple of highlights.

因此，我認為我們確實擁有一個均衡的新品牌組合，既有像 Charlotte Tilbury 這樣的知名大品牌，也有源源不斷的在 Ulta Beauty 環境中獨特或令人興奮的新興品牌。因此，我們不會提供有關今年與去年相比的新穎性的任何具體數字。但我會給你一些亮點。

First, you mentioned Charlotte Tilbury. And just to reiterate, that is in 600 stores and online, and we're excited about that. It was one of the top requested brands from our members, and we're pleased to be partnering with them to bring a unique and powerful experience to life. Sol de Janeiro is in 700 stores and also online and also was highly requested and brings just a terrific experience in-store and online and has been very well received since we launched that in January.

首先，你提到了夏洛特·蒂爾伯里。重申一下，這是在 600 家商店和網路上進行的，我們對此感到很興奮。它是我們會員最需要的品牌之一，我們很高興與他們合作，為生活帶來獨特而強大的體驗。 Sol de Janeiro 在 700 家商店和網上都有銷售，需求也很高，它在店內和網上帶來了極好的體驗，自我們 1 月份推出以來一直受到好評。

But there's a whole range of products that we're going to continue to launch and bring to life. We do focus, as I said, on emerging brands. And while I'm not going to, for competitive reasons, share some in the pipeline that are ahead of us, I'd highlight some of the brands that we launched last year like LolaVie, Polite Society, Half Magic, a brand like Live Tinted, which has been with us for a little bit, important brands playing an exciting role in driving growth in various categories that we're excited about. And our luxury business that I talked about, we continue to add brands to that throughout the year and see growth.

但我們將繼續推出一系列產品並將其變為現實。正如我所說，我們確實關注新興品牌。雖然出於競爭原因，我不會分享我們正在醞釀的一些品牌，但我會重點介紹我們去年推出的一些品牌，如 LolaVie、Polite Society、Half Magic、Live 等品牌Tinted 已經陪伴我們一段時間了，重要的品牌在推動各個類別的成長方面發揮著令人興奮的作用，我們對此感到興奮。我談到的我們的奢侈品業務，我們全年不斷增加品牌並看到成長。

So newness is important. We see -- we like the balance that we have. We're excited about the brands that we've launched so far, and I look forward to rolling out more partnerships and bringing newness across our portfolio throughout 2024. Paula, on the margin question?

所以新鮮感很重要。我們看到—我們喜歡我們所擁有的平衡。我們對迄今為止推出的品牌感到興奮，我期待在 2024 年建立更多合作夥伴關係，並為我們的產品組合帶來新鮮感。Paula，關於利潤問題？

Yes. So from an operating margin perspective, we shared 14% to 14.3% of sales. And that is mostly deleverage coming from SG&A as we complete many of our foundational elements of our transformation agenda and move to investments to enable growth as well as we operationalize the investments that we made to date and those go into one state. We also are managing ongoing wage pressures, which is assumed in the guidance. And we also will continue to support core traffic and experienced drivers.

是的。因此，從營業利潤率的角度來看，我們分享了 14% 至 14.3% 的銷售額。這主要是來自SG&A的去槓桿化，因為我們完成了轉型議程的許多基本要素，轉向投資以促進成長，以及我們將迄今為止所做的投資投入運營，並將這些投資納入一種狀態。我們也正在應對指南中假設的持續性工資壓力。我們也將繼續支持核心流量和經驗豐富的駕駛者。

And so as you think about SG&A growth for the year, it will moderate into the high single-digit range from the 12.5% growth we saw in fiscal 2023. And then we do expect gross margin to be down modestly as lower merchandise margin and deleverage from supply chain costs are partially offset by the growth we see and expect in other revenue.

因此，當你考慮今年的SG&A 成長時，它將從我們在2023 財年看到的12.5% 的成長放緩至較高的個位數範圍。然後，我們預計毛利率將隨著商品利潤率的下降和去槓桿化而小幅下降供應鏈成本部分被我們看到和預期的其他收入的成長所抵消。

Our next question comes from the line of Michael Baker with D.A. Davidson.

我們的下一個問題來自 Michael Baker 和 D.A.戴維森。

Really just a follow-up on what you just said. The -- can you tell us where you are in this investment -- these foundational investments? I think you said $62 million in 2023, which was below plan, and shift some into 2024. So what should it be in 2024? And even working backwards, can you remind us what it was in '21 and 2022? It was sort of supposed to have a 3-year investment plan that is rolling off. It sounds like it's still rolling off and -- although there will be some lingering costs in 2024. So just trying to conceptualize what 2024 investments will look like versus 2023.

實際上只是您剛才所說的後續行動。您能告訴我們您在這項投資中的進展嗎？這些基礎投資？我想你說的是 2023 年 6200 萬美元，這低於計劃，並將一些轉移到 2024 年。那麼 2024 年應該是多少？甚至倒退一下，你能提醒我們 21 年和 2022 年是什麼情況嗎？它應該有一個正在實施的三年投資計劃。聽起來它仍在滾動——儘管 2024 年將會有一些揮之不去的成本。因此，我們只是想概念一下 2024 年的投資與 2023 年相比會是什麼樣子。

Yes, Michael, I'll start with some of the numbers and then turn it over to Kecia so she can give a little bit more flavor for where we are. So we had an incremental $55 million in 2022 related to our transformational strategic investments. We communicated $62 million incremental in 2023. As you think about 2024, we expect limited incremental investment as we complete the foundational elements of our transformational agenda. Think about Project SOAR, Digital Store and other IT projects.

是的，邁克爾，我將從一些數字開始，然後將其交給 Kecia，以便她可以為我們所處的位置提供更多資訊。因此，到 2022 年，我們的轉型策略投資將增加 5,500 萬美元。我們宣布 2023 年將增加 6,200 萬美元。展望 2024 年，我們預計在完成轉型議程的基本要素時，增量投資將有限。想想 Project SOAR、Digital Store 和其他 IT 專案。

But as I communicated, once we complete those particular systems, these upgraded systems roll into our core operations and become a part of our base, and there's run costs associated to that. So there is run cost associated with those foundational investments. We will continue to invest to enable growth as well as the other items that I mentioned regarding wage pressures and investing in traffic and experienced drivers. Kecia?

但正如我所傳達的，一旦我們完成了這些特定的系統，這些升級的系統就會進入我們的核心運作並成為我們基地的一部分，並且存在與之相關的運作成本。因此，這些基礎投資會產生相關的營運成本。我們將繼續投資以促進成長以及我提到的有關工資壓力和投資於交通和經驗豐富的司機的其他項目。凱西亞？

Yes. So in regards to like where we are on the investments and where we are in the projects for our ERP upgrade or what we're internally calling as Project SOAR, just this week, we completed our Dallas DC. And we have plans to wrap up Greenwood and Fresno and open up our new MFC in Bolingbrook, which is a relocation of the existing FFC in Romeoville before peak this year. Part of the ERP upgrade, we're also transitioning our store systems and our merchandising systems. And we have those plans to be completed before the second half, again prior to peak.

是的。因此，就我們的投資情況以及 ERP 升級項目或我們內部稱為 SOAR 項目的情況而言，就在本週，我們完成了達拉斯 DC。我們計劃結束格林伍德和弗雷斯諾的業務，並在 Bolingbrook 開設新的 MFC，這是在今年高峰期之前搬遷到羅密歐維爾的現有 FFC。作為 ERP 升級的一部分，我們也對商店系統和銷售系統進行轉型。我們計劃在下半年之前完成這些計劃，同樣是在高峰之前完成。

For supply chain in '24, we are continuing to invest in our automation capabilities. And I mentioned already the MFC in Bolingbrook hits on our supply chain lines and then also finishing out that retrofit in Dallas -- the Dallas DC. And then for the Digital Store of the Future, so our Digital Store platform, we expect that to be completed in the first half of 2024. And we're wrapping up all of our upgrades around our analytical tools and reporting capabilities. So bottom line, we continue to be on track and on our budget, and we are all in on wrapping these foundational enabling systems up this year.

對於24年的供應鏈，我們將繼續投資於我們的自動化能力。我已經提到，Bolingbrook 的 MFC 對我們的供應鏈線路產生了影響，然後還在達拉斯（達拉斯特區）完成了改造。然後，對於未來的數位商店，也就是我們的數位商店平台，我們預計將在 2024 年上半年完成。我們正在圍繞分析工具和報告功能完成所有升級。因此，最重要的是，我們繼續按計劃和預算進行，今年我們將全力以赴完成這些基礎支援系統。

Our next question comes from the line of Anthony Chukumba with Loop Capital Markets.

我們的下一個問題來自 Loop Capital Markets 的 Anthony Chukumba。

Let me add my congratulations to Scott as well. It's been a pleasure working with you all these years. So my question was on the luxury brands. I guess just 2 parts to the same question, both pretty quick. First off, how did they perform relative to your expectations in 2024? And what are your expectations in terms of additional brand rollouts -- luxury brand rollouts in 20 -- sorry, in 2023? And then what are your expectations for additional luxury brand rollouts in 2024?

讓我也向斯科特表示祝賀。這些年來與您合作非常愉快。我的問題是關於奢侈品牌的。我想同一個問題只有兩個部分，都很快。首先，他們在 2024 年的表現與您的預期相比如何？您對額外品牌推出（20 個奢侈品牌推出）（抱歉，2023 年）有何期望？那麼您對 2024 年更多奢侈品牌的推出有何期望？

Great. Well, thanks for the question. And yes, luxury, as I said, was one of our -- one of many initiatives last year to drive engagement. And we're really pleased with establishing that more firmly with some of our existing partners, including Chanel, but Dior, NATASHA DENONA, Pat McGrath. And so we see strong performance, and we're really pleased with how our guests are engaging in that part of the business.

偉大的。嗯，謝謝你的提問。是的，正如我所說，奢侈品是我們去年推動參與的眾多舉措之一。我們非常高興與現有的一些合作夥伴建立更牢固的關係，包括 Chanel、Dior、NATASHA DENONA、Pat McGrath。因此，我們看到了強勁的表現，我們對我們的客人參與這部分業務的方式感到非常滿意。

We had a lot of confidence going in because of existing relationships with brands like Chanel. And then by elevating and expanding it, it has really, we believe, met our guests' needs. And they're excited about it. And it further demonstrates our ability to deliver all things beauty from all price points, including luxury.

由於與香奈兒等品牌的現有關係，我們對此充滿信心。然後，透過提升和擴展它，我們相信它確實滿足了客人的需求。他們對此感到興奮。它也進一步證明了我們有能力從各個價位提供一切美麗的事物，包括奢侈品。

We're not sharing any specific launches of anything beyond what I've already shared today. More broadly, as I said, with newness, we have a steady stream of newness throughout the year, and we'll continue to innovate. Specifically within luxury, our focus is continuing to grow in partnership with the brands that we've launched and find new ways to expand those businesses and delight our guests with them. And we're really pleased and proud to have that experience in our stores.

除了我今天已經分享的內容之外，我們不會分享任何具體的發佈內容。更廣泛地說，正如我所說，有了新鮮感，我們全年都有源源不絕的新鮮感，我們將繼續創新。特別是在奢侈品領域，我們的重點是繼續與我們推出的品牌合作，尋找新的方法來擴展這些業務並讓我們的客人滿意。我們非常高興和自豪能夠在我們的商店中獲得這種體驗。

Operator, can we have the last question, please?

接線員，請問最後一個問題可以嗎？

Our final question comes from the line of Adrienne Yih with Barclays.

我們的最後一個問題來自巴克萊銀行的 Adrienne Yih。

Scott, congratulations. It's been great, and thanks for all the help over the years. This question is maybe for Dave or Kecia. Can you talk about the promotional environment that your guidance is under for 2024? Is it expected to sort of remain in maybe the first half and then abate or kind of preexist all year long and whether it was more from prestige? Are you concerned that there perhaps is a longer-term shift to mass or masstige from younger or more price-sensitive consumers?

斯科特，恭喜你。非常棒，感謝多年來的所有幫助。這個問題可能是向 Dave 或 Kecia 提出的。能談談2024年您的指導下的促銷環境嗎？它是否預計會在上半年保持不變，然後減弱，或者全年都存在，是否更多是出於聲望？您是否擔心年輕或對價格更敏感的消費者可能會長期轉向大眾化或大眾化？

And then Scott and Paula, just a quick one. In your 4% to 5% comp, what are you expecting in terms of any ASP increases this year? And what's the rationale behind the low single-digit to mid-single-digit comp in the back half? What's going to drive the acceleration?

然後是斯科特和保拉，只是很快的。在您的 4% 至 5% 的比較中，您預計今年的 ASP 成長是多少？後半段的低個位數到中個位數的對比背後的理由是什麼？是什麼推動了加速？

So yes, just on the promotional environment, what -- I probably won't answer every one of your detailed questions because we're not going to break it out that way exactly. What I'll say more broadly is we're not expecting that the promotional environment is going to significantly intensify or become irrational. We are in a competitive environment. That's for sure. And we are focused on ensuring that we're delivering on our leadership position.

所以，是的，就促銷環境而言，我可能不會回答你們的每一個詳細問題，因為我們不會完全按照這種方式進行分解。我要更廣泛地說的是，我們預期促銷環境不會顯著加劇或變得不合理。我們處於一個競爭的環境。這是肯定的。我們致力於確保我們保持領先地位。

So as we look forward, we would anticipate and we have in our plans the ability to drive our business, which includes marketing, store labor, digital experiences and promotional activity as appropriate. But not an expectation more broadly for a significant step. And we do anticipate, as we saw in 2023, that it will still remain well below 2019 levels.

因此，展望未來，我們預計並且我們的計劃中有能力推動我們的業務，其中包括行銷、商店勞動力、數位體驗和適當的促銷活動。但並不是更廣泛地期望邁出重要一步。正如我們在 2023 年看到的那樣，我們確實預計該數字仍將遠低於 2019 年的水平。

The mass to mass prestige question, we see opportunity across both parts of the business. Yes, consumers are engaged, and young consumers are engaged in mass, but they're also engaged in prestige. They're loving our luxury experience. So it's really not so much about price or promotion necessarily as what brand is really delivering great innovation, great marketing, engaging with them in social media. Those brands will win and -- regardless of the price points. Paula, do you want to give a little color on some of the 4% to 5%?

對於大眾對大眾的聲望問題，我們在業務的兩個部分都看到了機會。是的，消費者參與了，年輕消費者參與了大眾，但他們也參與了聲望。他們喜歡我們的奢華體驗。因此，價格或促銷並不一定重要，重要的是哪個品牌真正提供了偉大的創新、偉大的行銷，並在社群媒體上與他們互動。這些品牌將獲勝——無論價格如何。 Paula，你想對 4% 到 5% 的一些內容做一些說明嗎？

Sure. Adrienne, on your question with regards to expectation around ASP, what I would share is that we are planning for a more normalized pricing environment in 2024.

當然。 Adrienne，關於您對 ASP 的期望的問題，我想分享的是，我們計劃在 2024 年建立一個更規範化的定價環境。

Great. Thank you, and thanks, everyone, for joining today. I'd like to close by thanking our 55,000 associates for delivering a strong 2023. Together, I know we will continue to unleash the unique power of beauty and keep moving our business forward in exciting ways. I'm optimistic about the future of Ulta Beauty and confident we will continue to create significant shareholder value.

偉大的。謝謝你們，也謝謝大家今天的加入。最後，我要感謝我們的 55,000 名員工為我們帶來了強勁的 2023 年。我知道，我們將共同繼續釋放美麗的獨特力量，並以令人興奮的方式繼續推動我們的業務向前發展。我對 Ulta Beauty 的未來持樂觀態度，並相信我們將繼續創造顯著的股東價值。

I do want to take 1 second to thank Scott again. Scott, as I said, has been an amazing partner to all of us, and I so appreciate his impact and his leadership. And I want to thank those on the call that have the chance to thank him yourself. I know he loved spending time in all of our meetings and all of our earnings calls. It was -- I know he appreciated partnership with all of you, and I do want to thank Scott for everything you've done for our company. Thank you, Scott.

我確實想花一秒鐘再次感謝斯科特。正如我所說，斯科特一直是我們所有人的出色合作夥伴，我非常欣賞他的影響力和領導力。我要感謝那些有機會親自感謝祂的人。我知道他喜歡花時間參加我們所有的會議和所有的財報電話會議。我知道他很感謝與你們所有人的合作，我確實要感謝史考特為我們公司所做的一切。謝謝你，斯科特。

We look forward to speaking to all of you again when we report results for the first quarter of fiscal 2024 on May 30. Thank you again, and have a great night.

我們期待在 5 月 30 日報告 2024 財年第一季業績時再次與大家交談。再次感謝大家，祝您度過一個愉快的夜晚。

This concludes today's teleconference. You may disconnect your lines at this time. Thank you for your participation.

今天的電話會議到此結束。此時您可以斷開線路。感謝您的參與。