Birks & Mayors Q1 Net Sales $53.6 Million
July 21, 09
North American jewelry retailer Birks & Mayors Inc. on Monday reported a 26 percent year-over-year decrease in net sales during the first quarter, totaling $53.6 million.
The company also reported that comparable store sales (which include stores open in the same period in both the current and prior year and at constant exchange rates) during this period decreased by 20 percent.
Comparable store sales in the U.S. declined 26 percent, while in Canada they declined 13 percent.
The retailer said that $4.3 million of the decrease in net sales is related to translating the sales of the company's Canadian operations into U.S. dollars with a relatively weaker Canadian dollar.
“While we are encouraged by a steady improvement in the rate of monthly comparable store sales declines since the end of March, the competitive landscape, including the liquidation sales of jewelry and timepieces, will continue to create a challenging sales environment for the Company and the jewelry industry,” said President and CEO Thomas A. Andruskevich.
Birks & Mayors recently reported a 13.9 percent decline in annual net sales to $270.9 million, leading to a net loss of $61 million compared to a $10.4 million profit in the prior year.
According to analysts Ken Gassman, the annual loss included a “wagonload of unusual charges.” After excluding the unusual financial items, the company actually lost $14.6 million from operations for the fiscal year ended March 2009.