eCost.com posts higher first quarter numbers

Online electronics retailer eCost.com expects to report preliminary revenue of $26 million for the quarter ending June 30, 2007, a 20% increase over $21.6 million for the first quarter of 2007. Management chalks up sales gains in both quarters so far in 2007 to improved web functions and customer service and greater product selection.

ECost.com sales were down 10% compared to $28.8 million in the second quarter of 2006, according to its preliminary report. However, a steady rise from Q4 2006 revenue, at $21.1 million, has encouraged management. “ECost.com’s second quarter sales have noticeably increased quarter-to-quarter, and we believe that the quarter-to-quarter comparison is a key measurement of our turnaround progress,” says Mark Layton, PFSweb chairman and CEO.

“The continued positive trends that eCost.com has experienced so far this year offer initial verification that the changes we have implemented are working,” he says. “These changes include improved customer service, enhanced web site functions and an expansion of the number of available products to more than 100,000 SKUs in a wider variety of categories.”

ECost.com, No. 111 in the Internet Retailer Top 500 Guide, is a subsidiary of business process outsourcing and e-commerce technology provider PFSweb Inc.