ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, April 12, 1996 TAG: 9604120042
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: A-7 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MEGAN SCHNABEL STAFF WRITER
Inspired by the approach of Easter and the promise of warm weather, consumers flocked to the malls during March, giving apparel retailers in Southwest Virginia and across the nation a much-needed boost. The month's results even led some analysts to predict a long-term recovery.
"Apparel sales look like they're finally rebounding after two lackluster years," said Ken Gassman, a retail analyst for Davenport & Co. of Virginia Inc. in Richmond.
Out at the malls, shoppers are snapping up what Gassman said are the best-looking, brightest spring fashions he's seen in several years.
"Whatever the emotional factors are, they've finally come together and consumers are buying," he said.
Kim Mills, women's department manager at Sears, Roebuck & Co.'s store in Valley View Mall, said the store had to bring additional girls' Easter dresses from other stores to keep up with demand. The threat of a snowy holiday only seemed to make people more eager to dress in warm-weather clothes, she said.
"They're trying to create the season," she said.
Demand for spring fashions gave The Limited Inc. and Gap Inc., the two biggest U.S. clothing chains, their best sales gains in two years. And fashion-oriented department store chains - including Dillard Department Stores Inc., Federated Department Stores Inc. and May Department Stores Inc. - showed hearty increases as shoppers finally began to replace their old clothes.
Many retailers experienced a dismal Christmas season, with sales well below projected levels. The slump dragged into January, when winter storms closed shopping malls and left consumers - and their pocketbooks - stranded at home.
Analysts had predicted a sluggish spring as well, as people dug out from under stacks of Christmas credit card bills. But consumers, perhaps responding to the large number of new jobs created in February and March, have been spending more freely than expected, Gassman said.
Unseasonably cold weather in March did affect sales of spring and summer apparel at some area stores. And discount chains were hurt somewhat by sluggishness in seasonal merchandise such as lawn tools and plants because of unusually cold weather in many regions.
"It got so drastically cold," said Mike Henderson, an area sales manager at Leggett Valley View. "People were buying spring and summer clothes, but then everybody just got zapped back into winter."
But apparel sales began to pick up about two weeks before Easter, he said, and by the time the holiday weekend arrived, shoppers were flocking to the store.
March sales figures don't tell the entire spring retail story, however. Easter fell earlier this year than last, pulling many pre-Easter sales from April into March. To account for this shift, many analysts said it will be important to combine both months' results to get an accurate reading on the season's shopping patterns.
And any economic growth is likely to be tempered by interest rates, which seem headed for another upswing, Gassman said. This will slow the number of housing starts, which, in turn, will affect sales of furniture and other big-ticket, durable goods. And consumers who do buy homes will have to cope with higher monthly payments and so will have less disposable income.
But analysts and retailers remain optimistic about summer and fall sales. Sears' Mills said she expects double-digit sales increases for the rest of the year. And Gassman predicted a strong back-to-school apparel season, leading to a successful Christmas.
"There's no reason to think the apparel recovery won't continue," he said.
Here are March results reported by major chains operating stores in Western Virginia. The monthly sales are followed by the percentage of change from March 1995, and by the change in same-store sales.
Same-store sales, a measure of a chain's stores that have operated for at least 12 months, are considered a better indicator of a retailer's performance because they remove the impact of extraordinarily strong sales from opening new outlets.
American Eagle Outfitters: sales of $21.5 million, up 13.7 percent from March 1995, same-store sales up 14.1 percent.
Bombay Co.: $26.2 million, unchanged, up 15 percent.
Charming Shoppes, parent of Fashion Bug and Fashion Bug Plus stores: $93.7 million, down 13 percent, down 6 percent.
Circuit City: $555.1 million, up 25 percent, up 3 percent.
The Gap: $473 million, up 32 percent, up 13 percent.
Heilig-Meyers: $102.4 million, up 15 percent, up 3.2 percent.
Hills Department Stores: $159.5 million, up 10.4 percent, up 7.3 percent.
Kmart: $2.86 billion, down 1.5 percent, down 0.5 percent.
Lechters: $33.8 million, up 11.1 percent, up 3.6 percent.
The Limited: $718.9 million, up 16 percent, up 8 percent.
Lowe's: $752.2 million, up 7 percent, down 8 percent.
May Department Stores, parent of Hecht's and Payless ShoeSource stores: $959.5 million, up 16.6 percent, up 9 percent.
J.C. Penney Co.: $1.86 billion, up 2.8 percent, down 1 percent.
Sears, Roebuck and Co.: $3.29 billion, up 9.7 percent, up 6.8 percent.
S&K Famous Brands: $12.1 million, up 13 percent, up 7 percent.
TJX Cos., parent of T.J. Maxx: $665 million, up 88 percent, up 4 percent.
Wal-Mart Stores: $9.06 billion, up 13 percent, up 5.1 percent.
Woolworth Corp.: $765 million, up 4.4 percent, up 4.6 percent.
Bloomburg Business News contributed information to this story.
LENGTH: Long : 117 lines ILLUSTRATION: GRAPHIC: Chart by AP.by CNB