Turnaround plan puts Pier 1 back in the black

Published: April 11, 2008, 5:38 am

By BARRY SHLACHTER FORT WORTH -- Shares in Pier 1 Imports climbed more than 9 percent Thursday after its chief executive said the home-furnishing retailer overcame "self-inflicted" problems to produce its first quarterly profit in three years and its first gain in comparable-store sales in 17 quarters."A year ago, this company was looking into the abyss," Alex Smith told analysts during a conference call. "We had just lost $227 million, and we were burning through cash at an alarming rate. The business had lost its way."By cutting costs, dumping $500-ticket furniture pieces, improving shipment time and re-creating a "treasure hunt" atmosphere for customers in its stores, Smith said the Fort Worth-based chain strengthened its margins and achieved profitability."What a difference a year makes," said Smith, who joined Pier 1 in February 2007. "While we knew these results were possible, we exceeded our own internal expectations."Shares (ticker: PIR) closed at $7.54, a gain of 65 cents,

[ Full article ]

Blog link

Rating: 0

Comments