Wall Street can't stop obsessing over tech, chips, and data centers. But if you step away from the crowded artificial intelligence trade, you'll find real companies quietly fixing their businesses and trading at deep discounts. Jim Cramer recently pointed investors toward two old-school apparel names worth buying: VF Corporation and Kontoor Brands.
Most people dismiss traditional retail stocks because they think e-commerce and fast fashion destroyed them forever. They assume legacy brands are dead money. Cramer argues the exact opposite. When everyone else chases high-flying momentum stocks, patient buyers can pick up cash-generating apparel giants while valuations sit in the basement. Don't miss our recent coverage on this related article.
Why VF Corporation Is Finally Turning the Corner
VF Corp owns massive lifestyle brands like The North Face, Timberland, and Vans. For a long time, the stock was absolute dead weight. Management stumbled, execution faltered, and Vans suffered a brutal identity crisis that alienated core skaters and teens. Wall Street punished the stock mercilessly, driving shares down from past highs.
Under CEO Bracken Darrell, the company is staging a hard-fought turnaround. Recent analyst upgrades highlight stabilizing trends at Vans, proving that product refreshes and tighter distribution are finally taking hold. Meanwhile, outdoor staples like The North Face continue to pull in steady consumer demand. To read more about the context of this, The Motley Fool provides an excellent breakdown.
Margins are improving. Debt is coming down. When a beaten-down brand starts fixing operational leaks, the stock doesn't just recover—it snaps back violently. Trading at depressed valuations with a solid dividend yield, VF Corp offers an attractive entry point for investors tired of paying fifty times forward earnings for software companies.
Kontoor Brands and the Quiet Denim Resurgence
If VF Corp is a turnaround play, Kontoor Brands is the steady operator executing in plain sight. Spun off from VF a few years ago, Kontoor houses powerhouse denim labels Wrangler and Lee.
While tech investors sweat over quarterly semiconductor guidance, Kontoor benefits from a resilient denim revival. Piper Sandler's teen surveys and recent retail data show that classic denim remains a wardrobe staple despite shifting economic pressures. Kontoor keeps delivering solid execution, leaning into brand collaborations, premium lines like Wrangler's Blue Bell collection, and shareholder-friendly moves like share buybacks.
The stock trades at a very reasonable forward multiple compared to historical norms and peers like Levi Strauss. Wall Street analysts have adjusted price targets upward, pointing to international growth and disciplined cost management. When you buy Kontoor, you aren't betting on speculative tech hype. You're buying a cash flow machine returning capital to shareholders through dividends and buybacks.
What Most Investors Miss About Non AI Sectors
People love simple narratives. Right now, the dominant narrative says you should dump everything into tech or miss out entirely. That is terrible advice.
Sectors move in cycles. Consumer discretionary stocks have taken a beating from high interest rates, persistent inflation concerns, and cautious consumer spending. That macro pressure creates opportunity. When quality companies sell off simply because they don't make microchips, value investors step in.
You don't need a computer science degree to understand apparel brands. You just need to look at whether management is cutting excess costs, paying down debt, and fixing broken product lines. Both VF Corp and Kontoor Brands fit that exact description.
How to Play the Apparel Sector Now
Don't go all-in on retail tomorrow morning. Volatility remains high as the broader market digests shifting interest rate expectations and consumer spending data.
Instead, look at your portfolio allocation. If you are entirely tech-heavy, adding exposure to out-of-favor consumer names makes logical sense. Watch earnings reports closely over the next two quarters to confirm that VF Corp's Vans turnaround holds up and Kontoor maintains its margin discipline. Buy in tranches, collect your dividends, and let the rest of the market chase shiny objects while you quietly compound value.
