PEMBROKE PINES, Fla., Dec. 1 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Claire's Stores,
Inc. (NYSE: CLE) today reported that for the four weeks ended November 26,
2005 comparable store sales rose five percent, in contrast to the four-week
period ended November 27, 2004, when comparable store sales rose three
percent. Total sales during the four-week period ended November 26, 2005
increased four percent to $101,433,000 compared with $97,325,000 for the
comparable four-week period last year.
Comparable store sales results for November 2005 compared to November 2004
were as follows:
* Claire's North America: positive mid single digits
* Claire's International: positive low single digits
* Icing by Claire's: positive high single digits
Please note that our comparable store sales numbers are calculated in
local currencies. Total sales numbers give effect to the impact of foreign
exchange, with November 2005 revenues reflecting the strengthening of the U.S.
dollar compared to November 2004.
Co-Chairman and Co-CEO Bonnie Schaefer stated that, "Our international
division reported another month of positive comparable store sales, although
the gain was smaller than in previous months. Our business in November was
impacted by a number of external factors. Curfews and widespread transit
strikes throughout France caused store transactions and sales to come in below
expectations. In the U.K. we are focusing intently on maximizing the value of
each transaction to overcome the sluggish retail environment. Internally, we
are continuing to realign our inventories to capitalize on the jewelry trend
and to refine the allocation of merchandise between our North American
selection versus local buys. We believe that our Fiscal 2006 winter and
holiday assortment reflects real improvement over this time last year."
Co-Chairman and Co-CEO Marla Schaefer stated that, "We are pleased to note
that even with all of the uncertainty surrounding traffic patterns in the
month of November our consolidated comparable store sales for the month are at
the high end of our fourth quarter guidance. Our Claire's North American
stores significantly outperformed last year's results and Icing by Claire's
stores delivered high single digit gains on top of last year's low double
digit comparable store sales growth. We are, however, anticipating that even
more so than last year, our shoppers will wait until late in December to
complete their Christmas shopping."
CLAIRE'S STORES, INC.
(Monthly Sales in 000's)
TOTAL COMP. STORE
REPORTING PERIOD FY 2006 FY 2005 CHANGE CHANGE
February $88,139 $82,229 7% 6%
March $119,692 $105,782 13% 10%
April $94,962 $ 93,580 1% (2%)
May $94,593 $ 89,239 6% 3%
June $124,336 $116,757 6% 4%
July $105,838 $99,227 7% 7%
August $110,717 $98,990 12% 10%
September $116,366 $105,884 10% 8%
October $100,351 $91,828 9% 8%
November $101,433 $97,325 4% 5%
Year-to-Date $1,056,427 $980,841 8% 6%
Company Overview
Claire's Stores, Inc., is a leading international specialty retailer
offering value-priced costume jewelry and accessories to fashion-aware tweens,
teens and young adults through its two store concepts: Claire's and Icing by
Claire's. While the latter operates only in North America, Claire's operates
internationally. As of November 26, 2005, Claire's Stores, Inc. operated
approximately 2,900 stores in the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, the
Virgin Islands, the United Kingdom, Ireland, France, Switzerland, Austria,
Germany, Spain, Holland and Belgium. Claire's Stores, Inc. operates through
its subsidiary, Claire's Nippon, Co., Ltd., 170 stores in Japan as a 50:50
joint venture with AEON, Co., Ltd. (fka JUSCO, Co. Ltd.), a $40 billion
specialty retailer headquartered in Japan. The Company also licenses 81
stores in the Middle East and Turkey under a licensing and merchandising
agreement with Al Shaya Co., Ltd. and seven stores in South Africa under
similar agreements with The House of Busby Limited.
Forward-looking Statements
This press release contains "forward-looking statements" which represent
the Company's expectations or beliefs with respect to future events.
Statements that are not historical are considered forward-looking statements.
These forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and
uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those
anticipated. Those factors include, without limitation: changes in consumer
preferences and consumer spending for pre-teen, teen and young adult apparel
and accessories; competition; general economic conditions such as inflation
and increased energy costs; general and political social conditions such as
war, political unrest and terrorism; natural disasters or severe weather
events; currency fluctuations and exchange rate adjustments; changes in laws;
uncertainties generally associated with the specialty retailing business;
disruptions in our supply of inventory; inability to increase comparable store
sales at recent historical rates; inability to design and implement new
information systems; delays in anticipated store openings or renovations; and
uncertainty that definitive financial results may differ from preliminary
financial results due to, among other things, final GAAP adjustments. These
and other applicable risks, cautionary statements and factors that could cause
actual results to differ from the Company's forward-looking statements are
included in the Company's filings with the SEC, specifically as described in
the Company's annual report on Form 10-K for the Fiscal year ended January 29,
2005. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-
looking statements to reflect subsequent events or circumstances. The
historical results contained in this press release are not necessarily
indicative of the future performance of the Company.
Additional Information:
Note: Other Claire's Stores, Inc. press releases, a corporate profile and
most recent 10-K and 10-Q reports are available via Claire's corporate
website: http://www.clairestores.com. For information about our products and
stores, please go to http://www.claires.com.
SOURCE Claire's Stores, Inc.
 back to top
Related links:
http://www.clairestores.com
http://www.claires.com
Company News On-Call:
http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/174913.html
CONTACT:
Marisa F. Jacobs, Esq., Vice President of
Corporate Communications and Investor Relations for Claire's
Stores, Inc., +1-212-594-3127, fax +1-212-244-4237, or
marisa.jacobs@claires.com
|
