Bombay has big April gains; Pier 1, Havertys see declines
By Furniture Today Staff -- Furniture Today, May 11, 2003
Fort Worth, Texas — The Bombay Company's same-store sales stayed in the stratosphere with an 18% gain in the April reporting period, leading to a 23% gain in total revenues to $37 million.
In the fiscal first quarter, Bombay's same-store sales were up 25% and total revenues of $119 million were 31% ahead of last year.
Among other home furnishings retailers, Pier 1 Imports and Havertys reported modest declines in April same-store sales, while discounters Cost Plus and Big Lots reported first-quarter single-digit gains.
Fort Worth-based Pier 1's same-store sales were down 2.6% for the four weeks ended May 3, against a same-store gain of 9% a year earlier. Total revenues for the latest month were up 5%.
"Although customers remained cautious, April sales improved over March after the conclusion of the war," said Marvin Girouard, Pier 1 chairman and chief executive officer. "We experienced higher traffic, conversion rates and transactions, which trended higher through the month."
At Atlanta-based Havertys, comparable-store sales were down 4.9% from a year ago and total sales were off 1.9%. Clarence Smith, president and CEO, said comp-store sales had been up 10.5% in April 2002, when the company ran two warehouse inventory clearance events. Activity picked up in the last 10 days of April this year, and gross margins were ahead of last year, he said.
"We remain on schedule with the rollout of the enhanced warehouse and delivery service through our Eastern Distribution Center," he added. "Eight of the 13 markets scheduled for second-quarter conversion have now been completed and the remaining five will be transitioned in May and early June. We look forward to realizing cost reductions from these moves and enhancing customer service for the higher sales volumes we normally enjoy in the second half."
Big Lots reported a 7.3% same-store gain and an 11.5% total sales increase in April to $305.2 million. Cost Plus didn't report monthly results, but said same-store volume in its first quarter ended May 3 was up 3%, with total sales jumping 18.5% to $134.3 million. Home furnishings are a significant part of the mix for both companies.
| Retailers report April revenues | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Dollar amounts in millions | |||
| Company | Sales | Change | Same-store change |
| 1 For the four weeks ended May 3, 2003. Source: Retailers |
|||
| Pier 1 Imports1 | $120.6 | 5.0% | -2.6% |
| Havertys | $51.1 | -1.9% | -4.9% |
| Bombay1 | $37.0 | 23.0% | 18.0% |
-
Havertys' sales up, Pier 1's down
Oct 22, 2006 -
3 retailers' July sales decline
Aug 21, 2005 -
3 chains post fair-to-strong Feb.
Mar 7, 2004
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