It was a tough first quarter online and elsewhere for Abercrombie & Fitch Co.
In the quarter ended May 2, e-commerce sales for Abercrombie & Fitch decreased by 21.4% to $49.1 million from $62.5 million in the first quarter of 2008. In comparison, total sales for Abercrombie & Fitch, No. 58 in the Internet Retailer Top 500 Guide, decreased by 23.5% to $612.1 million from $800.2 million while comparable-store sales fell by 30%. Overall the web accounted for 8% of total revenue in the first quarter of 2009 and in the prior year. The youth apparel retailer posted a net loss of $26.8 million in the first quarter compared with net income of $62.1 million in Q1 of 2008.
"The first quarter was clearly a difficult one for us,” says Abercrombie & Fitch CEO Mike Jeffries. “With a challenging economic environment, the consumer continues to show a reluctance to spend on premium brands, a price consciousness dictating shopping habits unlike anything I have ever seen.”
As the year progresses, Abercrombie & Fitch will conduct a strategic review of its Ruehl business unit. The apparel retailer also has increased the amount it will spend on capital expenditures to $200 million from an earlier range of $165 million to $175 million. Abercrombie & Fitch expects to spend about $155 million opening new stores and remodeling some existing ones, and about $45 million on information technology, fulfillment and other projects for the home office.
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