MW More tops, more dresses and an AI 'stylist' - here's what 2026 could look like for Levi's

By Bill Peters

Levi's tops and non-denim items are growing in popularity. 'We expect that to continue,' its CEO says

Levi's reported quarterly earnings on Wednesday.

Levi Strauss, known for generations for its jeans, doesn't expect to rely on them as much for sales growth this year, as it banks more on tops and clothes that aren't made from denim.

During Levi's $(LEVI)$ fourth-quarter earnings call late Wednesday, Chief Executive Michelle Gass said that tops, whose sales were up in the double-digit percentage range, had driven nearly half of Levi's sales growth during the fourth quarter. Sweaters and other winter-season gear proved popular across the men's and women's sections, she said.

Over the past year, Chief Financial and Growth Officer Harmit Singh said that non-denim bottoms, tops, dresses and skirts accounted for nearly a third of the company's growth.

Gass said she expected more of the same this year.

"So speaking to tops, which had a really fantastic year ... we expect that tailwind to continue," she said. "Non-denim, again, is growing; it's growing fast. We expect that to continue."

She added: "So there's a lot of runway as we look into 2026 and beyond."

Gass has tried to make Levi's more of what she has called a "denim lifestyle" company. Over the years, the company has embraced baggier fits, jorts, western-wear trends, lighter-weight pants and pants with moisture control in an effort to reignite demand from consumers battling higher living costs. Under her leadership, Levi's has also tried to increase its direct-to-customer sales.

And as the world tries to embrace artificial intelligence, she said that this year, Levi's would launch an AI stylist that would offer recommendations through conversation. The company is joining the trend, as styling service Stitch Fix Inc. (SFIX) said earlier this month that some of its human stylists had the option to use AI to create images to show customers how garments might look on them.

For the full year, which runs through November, Levi's forecast adjusted earnings per share of $1.40 to $1.46, which was below estimates.

During its fourth quarter, Levi's sales ticked 1% higher to around $1.77 billion, the company said Wednesday, topping Wall Street's estimates. Adjusted per-share profit over that period was also better than expected.

None of that seemed to do much for Levi's stock, as shares were little changed on little volume in premarket trading on Thursday. Over the past 12 months, the stock has rallied 13.2%, while the S&P 500 index SPX has advanced 15.5%.

-Bill Peters

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January 29, 2026 08:11 ET (13:11 GMT)

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