OfficeMax, a business supply retailer whose holdings include catalogs, reported yesterday that sales for the fourth quarter and full fiscal year were down from the previous year but that the outlook for this year was strong.
The Cleveland-based retailer said sales were $1.274 billion for the fourth quarter, which ended Jan. 26, down from $1.417 billion in the same period in the previous fiscal year. Sales for the full year were $4.636 billion, down from $5.134 billion in the previous fiscal year.
On the positive side, OfficeMax reduced its inventory by $261 million, and its $229.5 million loss for the year was in line with analyst expectations. The company said it expected to be profitable in the current fiscal year, which ends next January.
Details about catalog sales and revenue were not disclosed in the company's report. OfficeMax offers about 30,000 products through its catalogs and its OfficeMax.com Web site and operates three distribution centers.
