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News Releases - 2006
Home > Investors > News Releases > 2006 > Liquidation World Q1 Interim Report
Calgary, February 15, 2006
Highlights of our financial results for the quarter were as follows:
Sales increased 9.9% on a same store basis, marking the highest quarterly sales in the Company’s history. Both increased average transaction size and, to a lesser extent, greater customer count contributed to increased same store sales.
We continue to apply a more disciplined approach to dealing with aged and other non-performing inventory in line with policies introduced in 2005 and, in that context, we are encouraged that gross margins of 38.3% are near the historical range of 38.6% to 40.8%.
Strong cost management led to a decrease in total expenses as a percentage of sales to 33.1%, 280 basis points lower than 35.9% during Q1 2005, and the lowest expense ratio in four years.
As we turn our attention to the longer term, we are excited about the prospects for our business. Increasingly, manufacturers are burdened with retailers’ decisions to discontinue merchandise, cancel partial orders or change merchandising strategies. Our existing supplier relationships remain strong and our unique, professional solution to these situations suggests a significant opportunity for growth. Our emphasis on planning and analytics will reduce our reliance on the less predictable sources of supply. While at the same time, our expertise in procuring more opportunistic sources of supply is being enhanced with our new business development group.
We are especially encouraged by the enthusiasm with which our associates have embraced the positive changes we are making to our business. Our results reflect their efforts and we thank them.
As a shareholder, your support of our business is appreciated. We take the trust you place in us seriously. We are confident that our plans support our customers’ expectations, employees’ ambitions and our commitment to increasing value to our shareholders. We look forward to reporting on our results in the future.
JONATHAN HILL
PRESIDENT & CEO