Austin, Texas company YETI has announced a voluntary recall for about 1.9 million coolers, backpacks, and cases after it was realized the closure can fail and release magnets that can be harmful or fatal if ingested.
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The affected products include the Hopper M20 Soft Backpack Cooler, M30 1.0,2.0 , YETI Sidekick Dry. The products were sold between March 2018 through January 2023.
According to YETI’s website, they are asking all customers using these items to stop using them immediately.
If you choose to file the recall claim YETI is offering a suggested replacement of equal or lesser value than the purchased product or a full refund in the form of a YETI gift card.
Here is some additional contact information:
Please contact YETI toll-free at 1-833-444-3151 (7 a.m. to 7 p.m. CT) or email [email protected] for more information.
How much does this recall cost?
Simple answer? A lot.
According to U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, they received over 1300 hundred reports about the magnets failing, or degrading. But they also mention that no reports of ingestion or fatal injuries have occurred.
YETI reported fourth quarter losses as it prepared for the official recall returns. In a time of year where the company sees an increase from the holiday, it reported an increase of only 1% down from the normal 10%.
Matt Reintjes, President and Chief Executive Officer says, “Excluding the impact of the recalls, our fourth quarter results were in line with our expectations, driven by the strength of our direct-to-consumer channel and the momentum of our international business”.
Because YETI is a publicly traded company its financials are available to see, and in an article on Yahoo Finance, it was nominated at the Bull of the Day. (March 9th, 2023).
The stock is down approximately 60% from all time highs, and shares were around $37 at the time of this post. That is a 37.59% drop over the last 12 months.
“On top of a remarkable 29% increase in 2021, YETI delivered strong sales growth in 2022, up 13% and 16% adjusted. Our results reflect the impact of the recalls during the fourth quarter. We believe these recalls are the right decision for our customers and our brand and are consistent with our commitment to durability, performance, quality and design,” said Matt Reintjes, President and Chief Executive Officer.
“On an adjusted basis, profitability remained strong in 2022 despite the significant impact of lingering supply chain costs. Importantly, gross margin headwinds began easing during the fourth quarter as we expected, with year-over-year levels expected to turn positive and gain momentum as we move into the upcoming quarters”.
The latest GoBox releases, and new color-ways have created some excitement in the product, so it’ll be interesting to see how quickly YETI can rebound from the recall.