Delia's Sees 25% Growth

NEW YORK CITY-Teen apparel retailer Delia’s will grow its square footage by 25% this year, according to executives, from the 62 it currently operates east of the Mississippi. Last year, the company opened 11 units.

So far this year, Delia’s has opened three stores, all of them in the Dallas area, including one in upscale Northpark Center. “This is consistent with our structure to cluster and fill in new markets,” said Robert Bernard, the company’s chief executive officer, during Delia’s fourth-quarter conference call. The company has nine more leases signed so far this year.

Stores in the chain current average $325 per sf, and executives are pushing for them to reach $400 per sf. Additionally, they are shooting for low single-digit same-stores sales growth out of the units on a consistent basis.

During the most recent quarter, which ended Jan. 28, same-store sales dropped 1.8% due to a reduction in non-apparel merchandise, which is one of the retailer’s strategies, executives said. Management also noted that comparable apparel sales at the chain were up 14.5%.

The company’s total sales for the quarter were $78.4 million, with its retail segment accounting for $20.6 million, rising 15.9%. Direct sales through the Internet and catalogs made up the rest of Delia’s revenues and increased 9.3%. Earnings per share in the quarter rose 23%, to 16 cents.

Delia’s Inc. was formerly was an indirect, wholly owned subsidiary of Alloy Inc. In May 2005, Alloy announced that its board of directors had approved the spinoff all of the outstanding common stock of Delia’s Inc. The Spinoff was completed as of Dec. 19.