The global retail group, which operates under the Zumiez, Blue Tomato, and Fast Times banners, reported an operating loss of $393,000 compared to a loss of $10,493,000 for the period ended Aug. 3. The Q2 net loss of $847,000 was 90 percent better than the year-ago loss of $8,509,000.
According to Zumiez CEO Rick Brooks, revenues improved by 8.1 percent to $210,179.000 from $194,438,000 as North American comparable sales rose in the high single digits, helped by refined apparel and footwear assortments. Overall comparable sales, including stores in Europe and Australia, increased by 3.6 percent. Gross margin improved by 250 basis points year-over-year to 34.2 percent.
Meanwhile, through the first 30 days of Q3 ended Sept. 2, Zumiez said sales were 6.8 percent higher year-over-year and up 12.1 percent on a comparable basis. The current outlook for all of Q3 calls for 2 to 4 percent sales growth to $221-$225 million, but up by 7 to 9 percent, excluding a calendar shift.
With plans to open nine stores in 2024, evenly among North America, Europe and Australia, Zumiez also intends to shutter approximately 25 locations by year-end. On Aug. 31, the retailer had 752 stores, including 593 in the U.S., 86 in Europe, and 27 in Australia.
