Dillard’s, Inc. announced that sales for the five weeks ended April 5, 2003 were $667,156,000 compared to sales for the five weeks ended April 6, 2002 of $763,394,000. Total sales decreased 13% for the five-week period. Sales in comparable stores for the five-week period decreased 12%.
Sales for the five-week and nine-week periods reflect the shift in the Easter holiday shopping pattern as Easter occurs three weeks later in 2003 during the fiscal month of April. Last year’s Easter sales traffic occurred entirely within or before the fiscal month of March. Due to the effect of other existing current external factors on the general retail sales environment, including the current war with Iraq, it is difficult to determine the negative impact of the Easter calendar shift on the Company’s March 2003 sales.
Sales for the nine weeks ended April 5, 2003 were $1,277,428,000 compared to sales for the nine weeks ended April 6, 2002 of $1,362,496,000. Sales decreased 6% for the nine-week period on both a total and comparable store basis. (See above discussion of Easter holiday calendar shift.)
