still alive
Samuels Jewelers Announces December Sales Results
AUSTIN, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 26, 1999--Samuels Jewelers, Inc., (OTC BB:SMJW), a leading specialty retailer of fine jewelry, today announced sales results for the December Holiday selling season.
Comparable sales increased 8.1% from $26,236,000 to $28,368,000 for the 110 stores open in both the 1997 and 1998 five week Holiday selling seasons. Since the 1997 Holiday selling season, Samuels has closed 20 under-performing stores and opened 2 new stores. Total sales for the five weeks ended January 2, 1999, were $28,639,000 compared to $28,998,000 for the same period last year. The 1.2% decrease in total sales was due to the closing of unprofitable stores and the continued tightening of credit underwriting standards.
Randy McCullough, Samuels President and Chief Executive Officer, noted that "these results are particularly encouraging given the continuing efforts to improve our credit portfolio. Our in-house credit cards accounted for approximately 43% of December's business. This is a decrease of approximately 14% from last year's level, yet we were still able to post a healthy comp store increase."
"The last year has been a year of milestones," continued McCullough. "We have developed the infrastructure necessary to affect our plans to grow our store base and to achieve the efficiencies required to become a profitable company. Our investors have steadily supported our efforts to completely remake the company, and I am very encouraged that the Holiday selling season has already begun to show the effects of our recently implemented changes."
Samuels Jewelers, Inc., currently operates 112 stores in 17 states throughout the country doing business as A. Hirsh & Son, Hatfield Jewelers, Mission Jewelers, Samuels Jewelers and Schubach Jewelers. A campaign is underway converging the multiple trade names under the Samuels Jewelers banner. |
