Restoration Hardware Inc. reported that net sales for the fiscal third quarter ended Nov. 3 totaled $76.6 million, down 5.4 percent from $81 million posted in the same period in the prior fiscal year.
Comparable-store sales for the quarter fell 8.8 percent compared with last fiscal year.
Comparable-store sales for the four weeks ending fiscal October decreased 0.8 percent from the same month last year. Comparable-store sales for fiscal September fell 18.4 percent, affected by the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
Third-quarter direct-to-customer sales, which include catalog and Internet, increased 32.4 percent to $6.6 million from $5 million in last year's fiscal third quarter.
Gross profit expressed as a percent of sales dropped to 20.9 percent for the fiscal third quarter from 25.2 percent in third-quarter fiscal 2000, primarily from markdowns to clear unproductive merchandise.
Selling, general and administrative expenses expressed as a percent of sales rose to 36.4 percent of sales, up from 33.6 percent, primarily from the decrease in comparable-store sales.
The Corte Madera, CA, company incurred a $7.9 million net loss for the fiscal third quarter compared with a net loss of $5.1 million for the quarter ended Oct. 28, 2000.
