Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, January 9, 1994 TAG: 9401040329
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: F4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: SANDRA BROWN KELLY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
"We had a great '93, and we're expecting the momentum to continue into '94," said Troy A. Peery Jr..
Heilig-Meyers' November sales, the latest figures available were up 42.6 percent; comparable-store sales increased 23.5 percent.
Mark Schewel, president of Schewel Furniture, was less enthusiastic, but still reported a 6 to 7 percent increase in sales last year.
"It was a fairly good year for us," Schewel said. "We think '94 should run along the same lines . . . not spectacular."
The outlook is not as good on the apparel side of retailing.
"We think the early part of '94 is going to be a very tough environment," said Roger Jenkins, president of Goody's Family Clothing Stores Inc.
Why this disparity in outlooks for the new year?
Jenkins said it's because women - who drive the clothing business - are more focused toward purchasing home goods, electronics, and computers.
Low mortgage rates sparked sales of houses and that's driving sales of items for the home.
There's no such excitement for apparel stores, however. Consumers' inattention to clothing makes for what Jenkins fears is "an uncertain retailing environment" in which retailers will be "slugging it out against each other."
He said Goody's stores will be focusing more and more on price and promotional efforts. That's what the Knoxville-based chain did to lure shoppers during the holiday season, when it gave away $100,000, including a Saturn car and a "a lot of 25-percent-off promotional coupons."
The company has had a store in the New River Valley for several years, and last year opened two in the Roanoke Valley.
Jenkins said the company met its sales goals in the Roanoke Valley, but "we expected to do better."
He said he thought the stores would have had quicker name recognition in the Roanoke Valley because the company already operated in the New River area. But that didn't prove to be true.
Talbot's was another newcomer to the area's retail market in 1993, but it had name recognition through its catalog sales before it opened in Southwest Roanoke County.
Its 1993 sales were strong everywhere "especially Virginia," said Edward Larsen, Talbot's chief financial officer.
"We have had a great year," Larsen said. The upper-end retailer had overall comparable store growth of 7 percent on top of last year's 11 percent.
Comparable stores sales measure revenues only at stores operating for at least a year, removing the impact on sales from new-store openings.
Still, Larsen is cautious about 1994.
"We expect a good year, but I'm not sure we can continue the pace of this year," he said.
by CNB