From: ASAP
The Spiegel Group reported sales of $217.8 million for the five weeks ended March 30, 2002, a 15 percent decrease from sales of $254.8 million for the same period ended March 31, 2001.
For the 13 weeks ended March 30, 2002, total sales declined 12 percent to $537.0 million from $611.7 million in the same period last year.
The company also reported that comparable-store sales for its Eddie Bauer division decreased 12 percent for the five-week period and 16 percent for the 13-week period ended March 30, 2002. Beginning this month, Eddie Bauer's comparable-store sales figures will include sales from its outlet store division.
The Group's sales results by division for the month of March reflect a decline of 11 percent at Eddie Bauer, 28 percent at Newport News and 11 percent at Spiegel Catalog. Sales results reflect weak customer demand as well as lower catalog circulation and less promotional activity compared to the prior year.
Sales from the Group's e-commerce channel posted a 16 percent increase for the month. Total direct sales declined 15 percent and the Group's retail store sales decreased 13 percent.
The company stated that based on preliminary figures, inventories were down approximately 16 percent at the end of March compared to last year, reflecting its initiative to tightly manage inventory commitments.
The Spiegel Group is a leading international specialty retailer marketing fashionable apparel and home furnishings to customers through catalogs, 580 specialty retail and outlet stores and e-commerce sites, including eddiebauer.com, newport-news.com and spiegel.com. The Spiegel Group's businesses include Eddie Bauer, Newport News, Spiegel and First Consumers National Bank. The company's Class A Non-Voting Common Stock trades on the Nasdaq National Market System under the ticker symbol: SPGLA. Investor relations information is available on The Spiegel Group Web site at http://www.thespiegelgroup.com.
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