Indigo reported earnings for the first quarter ending June 27 earlier in August, with sales of CA$135 million, down $57.5 million from $193 million last year, a 30 percent decline. Net loss was $(31.6) million, compared to $(19.1) million in last year’s quarter, during a period heavily affected by pandemic-related store closures. Indigo reopened their stores starting May 19 and had all but one of their stores open again by the end of the quarter, though with reduced hours and social distancing within stores. (As previously announced, they did close 15 small-format stores at the end of June rather than […]
Booksellers
Corporate: WH Smith Expects to Lay Off 1,500 Employees
WH Smith issued a brief trading update today to accompany proposals that would restructure their UK stores to lay off approximately 1500 employees across the business, with both Travel and High Street businesses facing a long, slow recovery from the pandemic. The cost of the plan is estimated at £15 million to £19 million pounds and they are in consultation with the employees. (In early July the Bookseller confirmed that the company was already in consultation to layoff 150 people at their head offices in London and Swindon.) Though High Street sales have improved gradually as lockdown restrictions eased, they […]
Hudson Permanently Lays Off 40 Percent of Staff with Bleak Outlook for Travel
The travel retailer and bookseller Hudson reported earnings for the second quarter ending June 30, 2020, with sales of just $62 million, an 88 percent decline from $510 million a year ago on worldwide airport store closures due to the pandemic. Like-for-like sales were $53 million, a decline of 82 percent. Sales of literature and publications fared even worse, declining 93 percent to $2.6 million, down from $39.9 million last year’s second quarter. In a new “reduction in workforce,” the company has permanently laid off nearly 40 percent of its team, both corporate and field staff, effective July 31. An […]
Title Mix Helps Bloomsbury to Sales Gain
Bloomsbury reported earnings for the four month period ending June 30, with trade sales of £31.5 million, up from £24.6 million — an unexpected increase of 28 percent over the prior year period, despite the disruption caused by COVID. Print revenues were 9 percent above last year’s sales, and digital revenues grew by 63 percent year-on-year, with ebook revenue up 53 percent. Performance was strongest in the US, where sales grew by 38 percent, led by Crescent City: House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J. Maas, Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race by Reni Eddo-Lodge, […]
Barnes & Noble Education Reports Continuing Decline, Sharpened by COVID
Barnes & Noble Education announced fourth quarter earnings, with sales of $256.9 million, down from $334.4 last period, a decline of 23.2 percent. Retail, by far BNED’s largest segment, was heavily hit as COVID shut down campuses nationwide, while sales in the much smaller wholesale and digital student solutions increased. Net loss was $(40.3) million, compared to a net loss of $(46.2) million in the prior year period. Both the quarter and year were a week longer than the comp year. For the fiscal year, sales were $1.85 billion, down from $2.04 billion, or 9 percent. Net loss was $(38.3) […]
Indigo Had Fourth Quarter Sales Drop and Big Writedowns, Before the Major COVID Impact
Canadian bookseller Indigo reported results for the fourth quarter ending March 28, with a poor finish to what had already been a transitional year for the company. Fourth quarter sales of $178 million (CA) were down 10.6 percent compared a year ago, falling $21 million. Stores were closed for the last two weeks of the quarter because of the pandemic, and the company said those March school break weeks “historically drove meaningful sales.” They showed a big net loss for the quarter almost equal to sales, of $171.3 million. That loss included non-cash impairment of $56.6 million — of which […]