Holiday sales slump for most major retailers - Denver Business Journal:

tasypaju.wordpress.com
Same-stores sales were down nationwide at several companies that reportedx monthly or quarterlysales Thursday. • Same-store sales at Nordstrom Inc. Nordstrom_Inc. _2F5517EAD13F442B909DF789EED3220A.html"> stores open a year or more droppes 11.4 percent last month but that was bettere than whatanalysts feared. The Seattle-based retailer (NYSE: JWN) reporte sales of $468 million for the month, which comparesw with sales of $486 millionm a year earlier. Analysts expectedd a comparable-store sales of drop of between 13 and 14 percentfor January, compared with January 2008. “The levekl of markdowns during the month was much greatet thanusual ...
as (Nordstrom) made appropriatse adjustments during the month to better alignn inventories prior to the close ofthe company’s fiscakl fourth quarter,” said analyst Dan Geiman of McAdams Wright Ragen of Seattle, in a note to For the fourth quarter, Nordstrom said sales dropped 8.5 percen t to $2.3 billion from $2.51 billion in 2007. Same-stors sales dropped 12.5 percent in the quarter compared with a year Forfiscal 2008, sales dropped to $8.26 billion from $8.83 billion in 2007. Same-store-salews for the year dropped 9 perceny compared withfiscal 2007.
Nordstrom has stores in Denver, Lone Tree and • -- which operates 3,014 including Victoria’s Secret and Bath Body Works -- saw a 9 percen t comparable store sales decrease for the monthending Jan. 31 nationwidee and a total salesa dropto $591.6 million compared to $625.8 milliob in January 2008. Same-store sales fell 10 percenr for the quarter and 9 percent for the while total quarterly sales slidto $2.9 billionh from $3.22 billion. Annual sales fell to $9 billioh from $10 billion in 2007.
The Ohio-based company (NYSE: LTD) reported negative comparabls store sales at all brands forthe month, quarter and year, except for a flat comparabls store sale for the Bath & Body Works chain in January. Still, the company said the Januarhy performance of all brandsbeat expectations. • had comparabld store sales and net sales declines for both the monthj andthe year, postingf a 20 percent same store sales declinde for the month ending Jan. 31 and a 13 percenyt net sales decreaseto $191.5 million from $219.7 millio n in January 2008. For the year, comparablwe store sales fell 13 percent, whild total sales dropped 6 percentto $3.5 billio n from $3.8 billion.
Comparable store sales fell at all brandasin January, with the Abercrombie kids clothing chaib and Hollister Co. hit the hardestr with 24 percent declines each. New Albany, Ohio-based Abercrombie Fitch (NYSE:ANF) at the end of Januarh operated 352Abercrombie & Fitch stores as well as more than 700 storew under other brands. Same store sales declines even hit closeouty retailer Sales at stores open at least two yearsdropped 3.2 percent for the quartefr ending Jan. 31. Total sales in the quarter dropped 3.4 perceny to $1.35 billion from $1.4 billion.
“Whilwe we were not pleased with the overall comp for the in the merchandise categories where there was consumerr interestor demand, we performed very well,” CEO Steve Fishmahn said in a release. “The more discretionary categoriess were challenging for us as they were for most of ourretaio competitors.” Consumables and hardlines – manufactured products such as hardwares and housewares – performed best for the chain, while home and furniture and toys performed worsed than last year, which the company expected. Full-yeafr comparable store sales droppedby 0.5 percent, whil total sales fell 0.3 percent to $4.59 billion from $4.
6