When it comes to RH, it’s complicated. In reporting its first-quarter numbers after close of market on Thursday, the luxury home furnishings retailer had some good news, some disappointing news, and some news that didn’t neatly fit into either end of the spectrum.

For the quarter, it hit a nice 12 percent increase in sales versus a year ago … but that was below a consensus analyst forecast of a 12.7 percent bump. Those same analysts were expecting an adjusted loss of 7 cents a share, but instead there was a non-GAAP profit of 13 cents a share.

And RH’s stock price, which has been off more than 55 percent since the start of the year, did a sharp about-face, gaining 18 percent in after-hours trading on Thursday.

Like we said, it’s complicated. Things were much simpler back in the Covid days when the retailer was blowing away its numbers on both the top and bottom lines.

This time, the results were mixed but did lean positive. Sales hit $814 million for the quarter as RH said it was starting to see some good results from its England outpost and new European stores. That beat its 10 percent increase in the fourth quarter of last year. It also beat analyst projections on EBITDA and showed better free cash flow versus a year ago.

But the company’s revenue guidance for the next quarter was $904.3 million versus analyst estimates of $910.9 million. Sell-side analysts are even more bullish for the full fiscal year, forecasting a 10.2 percent jump, which would be higher than RH has experienced for several years.

RH CEO, chairman and impresario Gary Friedman seemed to be in better spirits on this call than three months ago when his impromptu “oh shit” comment about the company’s sharp decline in its share price during the call created a viral moment. At the start of this call, Friedman jokingly referred to that incident, but that didn’t stop him from going off-color again when he said: “We’re making a lot of money in a shitty housing market,” adding: “There I go again.”

He laid out assorted bits and pieces about RH’s performance and plans in both his lengthy shareholder letter and the 100-minute analyst call, which was actually slightly shorter than usual. One of the key tactical changes the company is making is increasing its membership discount from 25 to 30 percent, a move Friedman said was designed to gobble up additional market share. (For a brief period immediately following the “Liberation Day” tariffs, the discount went up to 35 percent on outdoor.)

Another interesting tidbit: RH’s first stand-alone interior design studio, which opened last year in Palm Desert, California, is apparently off to the races. Friedman said that the location is bringing in $1 million in revenue per month from a 3,000-square-foot outpost, suggesting that the model is one the company might try to roll out at greater scale.

Though many of the analysts’ questions were focused on the impact of tariffs, Friedman was quick to change the subject. “We’re doing everything we want to do,” he said in response to a question about whether the company was cutting back any activities because of the overall marketplace or its recent diminished performance.

That “everything” includes its “multi-billion-dollar opportunity” with the opening of seven design galleries this year: Oklahoma City and Montreal will debut in the second quarter; Paris, Detroit, San Diego, and Manhasset, New York, are slated for the second half. The company is also expanding in East Hampton this week with the opening of a freestanding RH Outdoor Gallery. Additional European locations are scheduled in London and Milan for next year.

Also expected is a still-undisclosed “New Concept Gallery” format that will see three physical RH locations and a separate sourcebook. It was originally planned to open in the back half of this year, but is now slated for spring of 2026.

Never shy about defending his company—or its leadership—Friedman stood behind his forecast for a stronger second half of the year, one that would contribute to full-year revenue growth in the 10 to 13 percent range and adjusted EBITDA margin of 20 percent to 21 percent. When asked about that confidence, he said, “This is what we do for a living—we’re generally more right than wrong. I’m more confident than not confident.”

____________

Warren Shoulberg is the former editor in chief for several leading B2B publications. He has been a guest lecturer at the Columbia University Graduate School of Business; received honors from the International Furnishings and Design Association and the Fashion Institute of Technology; and been cited by The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Washington Post, CNN and other media as a leading industry expert. His Retail Watch columns offer deep industry insights on major markets and product categories.