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Non-Tech : Claire's Stores (CLE) NYSE -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Thomas N. Scruggs who wrote (533)	3/5/1998 8:43:00 AM
From: JAG	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 619

same store sales up 1%. sales up 14%. They noted momentum gained in last 3 weeks of the month. PEMBROKE PINES, Fla., March 5 /PRNewswire/ -- Claire's Stores, Inc. (NYSE:CLE) reported today sales for the four weeks ended February 28 were $33,634,000, up 14 percent over $29,534,000 reported for the four weeks ended March 1, 1997. Same store sales were up one percent for the comparable four week period. Rowland Schaefer, Chairman and President of Claire's, said the February results, particularly for the last three weeks of the month, showed a resumption of the positive sales trend the company has enjoyed for the past three years. "Last February was a very good month for us so we're especially pleased with the results we're reporting today," he said. "February was the first month of our new fiscal year and we think our performance during the month marks an excellent beginning for our first quarter and an indication that some fine tuning of our merchandise mix is having a positive effect. We not only achieved both record sales for the month and an increase in same store comparisons, but we also showed steadily improving results as the month progressed," he added. Mr. Schaefer said the company expects sales to be satisfactory in the first quarter and to continue gaining momentum through the new fiscal year. "It's important to note, however, that Easter is April 12 this year, two weeks later than last year, which means most of Easter's selling impetus will be in April this year, making simple month to month comparisons misleading. Because of Easter's shifting date, the March-April period should be thought of as one period; on that basis, we're optimistic that the next two months and the entire first quarter can remain ahead of last year." Claire's Stores, Inc., the nation's premier retailer specializing in one- stop shopping for teens' fashion accessories, currently owns more than 1730 stores in 49 states, the Caribbean, Canada, Japan and the United Kingdom, primarily under the names "Claire's," "Claire's Boutiques," "Topkapi," "Dara Michelle," "Claire's Accessories" and "Bow Bangles." (Monthly Sales in 000's) Reporting Change FY 1999 FY 1998 TOTAL SAME STORE CHANGE CHANGE February $33,634 $29,534 14% 1% SOURCE Claire's Stores, Inc. -0- 3/5/98 /NOTE TO EDITOR: Other Claire's Stores, Inc. press releases, a corporate profile, the company's most recent 10-K and 10-Q reports, and proxy statement are available by fax at no charge. For a menu of available material and instructions for receiving an immediate fax reply, call 800-CLENYSE (800-253-6973)./ /CONTACT: Glenn Canary, Director of Investor Relations, Claire's Stores, 954-433-3900, or e-mail, gcanary@prodigy.net/ /Web site: clairestores.com