Consistent with other recently-reported declines, Books-A-Million said sales for the quarter ending August 3 fell 8.6 percent to $109.2 million. Same-store sales declined further, down 12 percent — and they had a big net loss of $9.0, or $61 cents per share (compared to a loss of $900,000 a year ago). Similar to BN’s recent report, BAMM had to adjust for “cumulative losses in recent years” and incurred higher income tax expenses, accounting for $7.3 million of that loss. The chain suffered from both missing hits but also a slowdown in digital growth. CEO Terrance Finley said in the release, “Results for the […]
Booksellers
Nook Is Back to Making Their Own Color Devices
In a rather startling conference call with investors on Tuesday, Barnes & Noble’s current ranking executive Michael Huseby executed another turnabout on the company’s strategy for color devices, while blaming others for misunderstanding rather than simply admitting another change in direction. Huseby insisted that when BN said on June 25 that going forward their color devices would be produced by others, “many people interpreted [the] comments incorrectly,” but their statement stated sounded pretty clear: “The company plans to significantly reduce losses in the Nook segment by limiting risks associated with manufacturing. Going forward, the company intends to continue to design […]
Riggio “Suspends” Interest In Buying Barnes & Noble Stores, With Weak First Quarter Sales
As Barnes & Noble opened the 2014 fiscal year with falling sales across all segments of the business, the biggest news is the admission that chairman Leonard Riggio’s interest in offering to buy the retail bookstores has gone nowhere and is “suspended.” You could have read the tea leaves in the decline in the bookseller’s shares over the last three trading days, with the stock dropping almost 5 percent to $16.67 on Monday. But that will be modest against Tuesday’s trading; shares were down 16 percent in the first hour (down roughly $2.75 a share). In a separate SEC filing […]
Briefs: More Funding for Open Road; Commonwealth Book Prize Discontinued; And More
Open Road Integrated Media announced it has received $11 million in Series C funding led by private equity group NewSpring Capital (whose technology fund NewSpring Growth Capital III supplied $8 million) with existing investors Kohlberg Ventures, Azure Capital, and Golden Seeds joining NewSpring in the financing, bringing the total amount Open Road has raised to $24 million. On Open Road’s blog ceo Jane Friedman said the new funding will be used for new technology, additional revenue streams, expand their International Publishing Partners Translation Program (which includes 8 partners to date) and further investment in “appropriate content and technology companies.” Andrea […]
Sales and Profits Decline for Indigo As Fifty Shades & Hunger Games Effect Wanes
Earlier this week Canada’s dominant bookseller Indigo reported a 8.1 percent decrease in sales of C$171.5 million for the fiscal first quarter ending June 29, with a net loss of C$15 million (far greater than the $5.5 million loss for the same period a year ago.) Indigo attributed the revenue drop to “declining book and eReader sales,” as compared to the last year’s “strong sales of the Fifty Shades and Hunger Games trilogies.” They also closed 8 stores in the intervening year. Superstore sales comps were down 7.1 percent, small-format store comps fell 13.1 percent, and even online sales remained […]
Quarto Nudges Forward
Quarto Group reported results for the first half of 2013, with sales down slightly to $72.2 million (declining $1 million) and operating profit up slightly at $4 million (rising $100,000). CEO Marcus Leaver said in the release, “These results are encouraging overall but much remains to do. They show a portfolio in transition; where we have taken action, the results have begun to show, and more action is to come. Importantly we are clearly bringing down our debt levels and shall continue to do so.” Sales at their US division Quayside led the group, rising almost $2 million at $29 million. […]