Third quarter sales at J.Jill drop 6% year-to-year

Internet sales at The J. Jill Group dropped 6% to $17.1 million in the third quarter from $18.2 million in the year earlier period, contributing to a net loss of $2.7 million for the quarter. Web sales accounted for 16.6% of total net sales of $103 million, compared with 19.2% of net sales of $94.9 million in 2004.

Retail sales totaled $63.8 million in the third quarter, up 24.1% from $51.4 million a year earlier, and comp store sales rose 4.7%. Catalog sales totaled $20.1 million, down 15.9% from $23.9 million in 2004.

For the nine months ended Sept. 24, Internet sales increased 2.2% to $60.7 million from $59.4 million in 2004’s third quarter. J. Jill, No. 87 in the Internet Retailer Top 400 Guide to Retail Web Sites, reported a net loss of $1.5 million for the period. Web sales accounted for 19% of total net sales of $318.8 million, compared with 18.8% of net sales of $315.4 million a year earlier.

Retail sales for the nine months totaled $195.4 million, up 17.2% from $166.7 million, and catalog sales totaled $57.9 million, down 32.4% from $85.7 million a year earlier.