PEMBROKE PINES, Fla., Jan. 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Claire's Stores, Inc. reported today sales for the five weeks ended January 4 were $82,027,000, up 22 percent over $67,182,000 reported for the five weeks ended December 30, 1995. Same store sales were up l2% for the five week period.
"We had said publicly that we expected this year's holiday selling season to be the best in the company's history, and it was," said Rowland Schaefer, Claire's Chakman and Chief Executive officer. "Traffic was strong all month and particularly so during the last two weeks and clearly our customers liked the merchandise we offered."
Mr. Schaefer added that the company expects the strong sales trend to continue in January, the last month of Fiscal 1997, and through Fiscal 1998.
"Our success this year demonstrates that our strategy of concentration on the teenage market is a correct one," he said. "We're at the beginning of a significant increase in the teen population. By 2009, it's expected to be over 3O million in the United States. And they have money to spend, in 1996 nearly $100 billion."
Claire's fiscal year ends February 1. Mr. Schaefer said he expects the company to release yearend sales and earnings figures about February 18. "They'll be record numbers," he added, "and by a significant margin." In Fiscal 1996, the company earned $.66 per share on sales of $345 million. Claire's Stores, Inc., the nation's premier retailer specializing in one-stop shopping for women's fashion accessories, owns and operates 1569 stores in 49 states, the Caribbean, Canada, Japan and the United Kingdom.
Claire's Stores, Inc.
(Sales in 000s)
Reporting Change FY 1997 FY 1996 TOTAL SAME STORE
CHANGE CHANGE
February $ 24,355 $ 17,593 38% 21%
March 38,063 25,669 48% 24%
April 29,956 24,792 21% 2%
May 30,009 23,576 27% 10%
June 38,459 28,979 33% 10%
July 32,251 24,741 30% 7%
August 36,270 27,783 31% 12%
September 36,477 28,255 32% 10%
October 29,777 23,804 25% 7%
November 36,220 27,530 32% (3%)
December 82,027 67,182 22% 12%
Year to Date $413,864 $319,904 29% 10% SOURCE Claire's Stores, Inc.
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