Stage Stores, Inc. reported total sales for the five-week December period ended Jan. 1, 2011 increased 4.4% to $266 million from $255 million in the prior year five-week period ended Jan. 2, 2010. Comparable store sales increased 1.9%.
The company achieved comparable store sales increases in its accessories, cosmetics, footwear, gifts, junior’s and men’s categories during December. Geographically, all regions of the country had comparable store sales gains during the month.
SALES SUMMARY | ||||||||
Comparable Store Sales | Total Sales | |||||||
% Increase (Decrease) | ($ in Millions) | |||||||
Fiscal Period | 2010 | 2009 | 2010 | 2009 | ||||
| 1st Quarter | (0.6) | (9.0) | 340 | 333 | ||||
| 2nd Quarter | (1.6) | (10.7) | 345 | 342 | ||||
| 3rd Quarter | (0.3) | (5.4) | 332 | 325 | ||||
| November | 2.4 | (12.5) | 116 | 110 | ||||
| December | 1.9 | (2.2) | 266 | 255 | ||||
| 4th Qtr-To-Date | 2.1 | (5.6) | 382 | 365 | ||||
| Year-To-Date (11 Mos) | (0.1) | (7.7) | 1,399 | 1,365 | ||||
“We are pleased with our December sales performance,” said Andy Hall, president and CEO. “Our new stores performed well, all regions of the country generated positive comparable store sales results, our small market stores outperformed our larger stores, and our eCommerce platform was successfully launched. We are optimistic about January and expect the comparable store sales increase for the fourth quarter to be near the high end of our guidance range of 1% to 3%.”
Store Activity
The company stated that no new stores were opened during December. Looking ahead, the company plans to close three stores in January. With these closures, the company’s store count at fiscal year end will be 786 versus 758 at the end of last year.
