Welcome to the Business Journal Archives
Search for articles below, or continue to the all new BusinessJournalDaily.com now.
Search
"Cole National Reports $500,000 Net Loss"
"CLEVELAND -- Cole National Corp., a retailer of optical services and personalized gifts with over 2,900 locations throughout North America and the Caribbean, today reported a net loss of $500,000 for the first quarter of fiscal 2004 compared with a net loss of $6.4 million for the first quarter of fiscal 2003.The gross margin rate at Things Remembered, which operates a distribution center in North Jackson, Ohio, increased to 72.8% from 72.5% in last year's first quarter as a result of an increase in personalization sales, which carry a high gross margin rate. The average transaction increased 9%.Total revenue rose in the first quarter of fiscal 2004 to $307.7 million from $288.2 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2003. Overall, same store sales in the company's vision segment increase 5.7%."Cole National's improved operating and financial results for the first quarter of fiscal 2004 were led by the strong performance of Cole Licensed Brands, Cole Managed Vision, and Things Remembered," comments Larry Pollock, president and chief executive officer. "We are pleased that, within Cole Licensed Brands, Sears Optical, Target Optical and BJ's Optical each realized solid increases in same store sales."Overall, same store sales at Cole Licensed Brands rose 7.3% in the first quarter, although it should be noted that last year's results were impacted by the weak economy, the onset of the war in Iraq and unfavorable weather," Pollock continues. "Same store sales rose 5% at Sears Optical in this year's first quarter. Spectacle transactions increased 2.1%, driven by more aggressive promotional activity, while the average sale per spectacle transaction rose 2%, driven by a variety of factors, including the continued sale of premium frames and lenses and additional features such as non-glare coatings.Same store sales at Target Optical rose 17%, and the average spectacle transaction price increased 6.6%. As previously announced, Cole National closed 25 underperforming Target Optical stores during the first quarter. "Same store sales at BJ's Optical increased 20% in the first quarter," Pollock reports. ."Pearle Vision's same store sales in the U.S. company-owned stores increased 1.4% for the quarter, driven by modest increases in the number of transactions and the average transaction amount and higher exam fees," Pollock adds. "We began to realize improvements in productivity from the new automated manufacturing equipment we installed in our Dallas central lab last year. As expected, the new equipment lowered our manufacturing costs and decreased breakage. The Pearle Vision Preferred Credit Card, which enables us to provide extended payment terms to our customers for up to six months at no cost, continued to be effective, accounting for almost 11% of all sales at the company-owned stores during the period."Revenues for the first quarter of fiscal 2004 rose 6.7% to $307.7 million from $288.2 million during the first quarter of fiscal 2003 as a result of a 5.9% increase in overall same store sales and an increase in managed vision care revenues.Cole National Corp.'s vision business, together with Pearle franchisees, has 2,178 locations in the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands and includes Cole Managed Vision, one of the largest managed vision care benefit providers with multiple provider panels and nearly 20,000 practitioners. Cole's personalized gift business, Things Remembered, serves customers through 727 locations nationwide, catalogs and the Internet. Cole also has a 21% interest in Pearle Europe, which has 1,496 optical stores in 13 countries.Visit Things Remembered: www.thingsremembered.com"