Brookstone Inc. suffered a $2.3 million loss during the second quarter, despite double-digit increases in both retail and direct marketing sales.
The loss was due, in part, to settlement of a class-action lawsuit over overtime compensation, company spokespersons said. The Nashua, NH-based firm posted a $2.2 million loss during the same period in 2002.
Buoyed by strong Father’s Day sales, overall revenue totaled $80.5 million for the quarter ended Aug. 2, a 13% increase over the same period last year.
DM sales came in at $14 million, a 10.9% gain over the prior year. The firm attributed this to a 12.5% increase in circulation.
“Based on success of our test program over Father’s Day, we plan to more than double the circulation of the Brookstone catalog in the fourth quarter,” said CEO Michael Anthony in a statement.
He added that the firm plans to “target high-value customers who use the catalogs as a call-to-action to buy products through our direct marketing channels, and/or to make a destination purchase at one of our stores.”
Meanwhile, overall sales hit the $141.4 million mark during the first half, a 10.6% increase over the previous year. Direct mail sales enjoyed a 5.1% increase to $24.1 million.
In addition, the firm reduced its year-to-date loss to $8.7 million, compared with $8.8 million last year.
Because of the seasonal nature of its sales, Brookstone usually reports a loss during the first three quarters and makes its annual profit in the fourth quarter, the company explained.
Network
