Brown Shoe Company, Inc. announced preliminary net sales results for the nine-week period ended April 2, 2011. Consolidated net sales increased by 2.1 percent versus the year-ago period to $426 million.
The company's net sales performance during the nine-week period was impacted by the following items:
- The acquisition of American Sporting Goods Corporation on Feb. 17, 2011, which added $23 million of net sales to the Wholesale segment for the period;
- The timing of the Easter holiday, which occurred three weeks later in 2011 than in 2010. Accordingly, the company's results for the nine-week period ended April 2, 2011 do not include a comparable build for the Easter selling season;
- The elimination of three weeks of Buy-One, Get-One (BOGO) promotional events at Famous Footwear in the nine-week period versus the same period a year ago. An additional two weeks of BOGO are being eliminated in April, for a total of five fewer weeks in the first quarter versus the same period last year;
- Colder, wetter weather during the first nine weeks of 2011 than in 2010. Approximately two-thirds of the company's store base are in cold and moderate markets; and
- Challenging comparisons at Famous Footwear, as same-store sales for the first nine weeks of 2010 increased by 21.9 percent.
For the first quarter, the company now expects consolidated net sales of $619 to $634 million, which includes an expectation for a same-store sales decrease at Famous Footwear in the 2.0 to 4.0 percent range. In addition, a significant portion of wholesale shipments typically occurs in the last week of the quarter and may be dependent upon whether retail partners take receipt in the last week of April or first week of May. The company has not provided quarterly earnings per share guidance. The company remains comfortable with its previously stated full year 2011 guidance range of $1.25 to $1.32 per diluted share, or $1.37 to $1.47 per diluted share on an adjusted basis.
