Michael Kors to build massive European DC

The luxury retailer also said U.S. port congestion negatively impacted its margins in first quarter 2015.    Michael Kors will break ground next month on a 1 million-square-foot distribution center in Venlo, The Netherlands to service its European and Middle Eastern retail, wholesale, and eventually, e-commerce channels, the luxury retailer said last week.
   The high-tech warehouse, which will have green features such as a LED interior lighting and a solar-panel roof, is expected to accommodate Michael Kors’ projected growth for the next decade.
   Meanwhile, the company’s fourth quarter financial statements showed revenue growth of 17.8 percent to $1.1 billion, with earnings per sharing increasing 15 percent due to new store openings and e-commerce. But the retailer said during its earnings call with analysts that comparable store sales declined 1.7 percent.
   Officials attributed almost half the decline, approximately 0.9 percent, to shipping delays in footwear, women’s wear and small leather goods associated with the recent vessel congestion at West Coast ports. Other headwinds included slower tourist traffic because of the strong dollar and weakness in North American watch sales.