LOS ANGELES, CA (BRAIN) — Southwest retailer Sport Chalet saw sales fall 5.2 percent in its more recent quarter, although the chain’s online retailing was up 32 percent. The company showed a net loss of $3 million in its second quarter.
The picture didn’t look much better from a wider perspective: for the first half of fiscal 2014, sales decreased 4 percent and losses totaled $5.9 million.
In the most recent quarter, sales were $86.7 million, down from $91.5 million in the same period last year. Sports Chalet saw a 2.5 percent sales decrease in comparable stores. Additional sales declines of $1.8 million came from the closure of three underperforming stores and lower team sales. Those losses were offset by the online sales increase and the contribution from a new store that opened near the end of the quarter.
“The comparable store sales decline was reflective of general consumer caution and an uneven retail environment,” the company said in a statement Monday.
"Our second quarter had a disappointing start, as sales trends were weak in July and August, but turned positive in September on a comparable basis," said Craig Levra, chairman and CEO. "Sales trends have continued to improve as we progressed into fall, and our team sales division is also beginning to move into positive territory.
Levra said the company’s new generation store in downtown Los Angeles has performed significantly better than other stores. The store has a flexible floor layout that allows Sport Chalet to continually adapt its merchandise mix. Levra said that has resulted in better than average sales per square foot and gross margin.
"With additional capital, we believe there is enormous sales growth potential in rolling out this next generation format across our existing store base through a strategic remodel program, and opening new next generation stores in both our core markets and new geographies,” he said.
Sport Chalet has 52 stores in Arizona, California, Nevada and Utah, plus its online store at www.sportchalet.com; and its team sales division. Sport Chalet sells bikes from brands including Haro, Electra, Diamondback, KHS, Pure Fix and ASI’s Fuji and SE Bikes. The company’s stores also provide bicycle service and car rack installation.
Sports Chalet is traded on the NASDAQ Stock Exchange under the symbol SPCHA. Its stock performance is tracked on BRAIN's Industry Stock chart.
