American Apparel Inc., Los Angeles, a vertically integrated manufacturer, distributor, and retailer of branded fashion basic apparel, announced preliminary sales for the month ended August 31, 2013. On a preliminary basis, total net sales for August 2013 were $55.7 million, a decrease of 1 percent over August 2012. Comparable sales for August 2013 increased 3 percent, including a 2 percent increase in comparable store sales in the retail store channel and an 11 percent increase in net sales in the online channel. Wholesale net sales decreased 6 percent for the month.
“August represents our 27th consecutive month of positive comparable store sales growth,” said Dov Charney, chairman and chief executive of American Apparel Inc. “The 3 percent comparable sales increase in August is particularly meaningful given that we faced a 25 percent increase in August last year. We also believe the decrease in estimated wholesale net sales was primarily a timing difference in the placement of month end customer orders and we expect a return to positive sales growth for the wholesale segment in September.”
According to John Luttrell, chief financial officer of American Apparel Inc., “As previously disclosed, we have had a difficult time cutting over to our new distribution center in La Mirada, Calif., yet we have made major progress. Among other things, we have substantially fixed integration issues with information systems, strengthened our training efforts, and made necessary personnel changes. We are beginning to see light at the end of this tunnel. That being said, in the event there are further integration issues or if there are systems related disruptions in the future, we will most likely incur additional unanticipated costs and reduced sales.”
Dov Charney concluded, “Although we are disappointed with the lost sales and added costs from these problems, we believe as much today as ever before that once the transition is completed, the new center will improve efficiency for years to come and allow us to accelerate the growth of our retail, online and wholesale businesses.”
For more information, visit www.americanapparel.net.
