House & Home
House and Home
House and Home 
Thu, January 8, 2009
Tandy Leather Factory, Inc. Reports December Sales Down 1% Against December 2007
FORT WORTH, Texas--([ BUSINESS WIRE ])--Tandy Leather Factory, Inc. (AMEX: TLF) reported today that sales for the month of December were $4.8 million compared to $4.9 million in December 2007, down 1%. Year to date sales are down 4% to $53.3 million in the current year from $55.3 million last year. Tandy's UK store, which opened in mid-February, reported December sales of $84,000 and $838,000 for the year.
Retail Leathercraft posted December sales of $2.7 million, an increase of 10% over December 2007 sales of $2.5 million. The 72 comparable stores posted a 9% same store sales gain for the month. The store opened after December 2007 added sales for the month of $37,000. Annual sales for Retail Leathercraft are $25.3 million this year, a 2% increase over 2007 sales of $24.8 million. For 2008, same store sales were down 2%.
Wholesale Leathercraft posted sales of $2.0 million for December, down 16% from December 2007 sales of $2.4 million. Within the Wholesale Leathercraft division, the wholesale stores' sales were down 13% for the month while the National Account group posted a December sales decline of 38%. For the year, Wholesale Leathercraft sales are $26.4 million compared to $29.8 million in 2007, a loss of 11%. The stores and National Accounts each posted an 11% sales decline for 2008.
For the fourth quarter, sales were down 6%, from $14.7 million in 2007 to $13.9 million in the current year. Retail Leathercraft reported a 3% sales gain for the quarter, with sales totaling $7.0 compared to $6.8 million in 2007. The retail stores achieved a 1% same store sales gain for the quarter. Wholesale Leathercraft completed the quarter with a 16% sales loss, reporting sales of $6.5 million this quarter compared to sales of $7.7 million in last year's fourth quarter. The wholesale stores' sales were down 14% for the quarter and the National Account group's sales declined 30%.
Chief Executive Officer, Ron Morgan, commented, "It has been difficult to predict performance all year and December followed suit. I am extremely pleased with the performance of our retail stores for the month and the fourth quarter. It is great to end the year with such strong results. Our wholesale business continues to struggle although the majority of the sales decline for December came from only half a dozen wholesale stores. Our gross profit margins are holding well as we didn't have to offer extensive discounts to get the sales. 2009 is going to be a tough year, but we are not going to sit back and simply try to survive. We will be announcing a new store opening soon as evidence that we are moving forward despite the difficult economic times."
Chief Financial Officer, Shannon L. Greene, added, "We met our revenue guidance for the year and in this environment, that's a big accomplishment. Our National Account group finished the year in better shape than we originally expected with a $450,000 sales decline, compared to a budgeted $1 million sales decline. We ended the year in a strong cash position as I'm expecting we'll have close to $11 million in cash on our balance sheet."
Tandy Leather Factory, Inc., ([ http://www.tandyleatherfactory.com ]), headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, is a specialty retailer and wholesale distributor of a broad product line including leather, leatherworking tools, buckles and adornments for belts, leather dyes and finishes, saddle and tack hardware, and do-it-yourself kits. The Company distributes its products through its 29 Leather Factory stores, located in 19 states and 3 Canadian provinces, 73 Tandy Leather retail stores, located in 35 states and 5 Canadian provinces, one combination wholesale/retail store located in the United Kingdom, and Mid-Continent Leather Sales, one store located in Oklahoma. Its common stock trades on the American Stock Exchange with the symbol "TLF". To be included on Tandy Leather Factory's email distribution list, go to [ http://www.b2i.us/irpass.asp?BzID=1625&to=ea&s=0 ].
This news release may contain statements regarding future events, occurrences, circumstances, activities, performance, outcomes and results that are considered "forward-looking statements" as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual results and events may differ from those projected as a result of certain risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties include but are not limited to: changes in general economic conditions, negative trends in general consumer-spending levels, failure to realize the anticipated benefits of opening retail stores; availability of hides and leathers and resultant price fluctuations; change in customer preferences for our product, and other factors disclosed in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.These forward-looking statements are made only as of the date hereof, and except as required by law, we do not intend to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.