Lifetime Brands reported first quarter sales growth as a rise in e-commerce sales served to more than offset losses from brick-and-mortar retailers.
For the quarter ended March 31, consolidated net sales were $113.4 million, as compared to consolidated net sales of $110.9 million for the corresponding period in 2016. In constant currency, which excludes the impact of foreign exchange fluctuations, consolidated net sales increased $5.5 million, or 5.1%, as compared to consolidated net sales in the corresponding period in 2016.
Net loss was $1.3 million, or $0.09 per diluted share, as compared to a net loss of $4.3 million, or $0.31 per diluted share, in the corresponding period in 2016. Adjusted net loss was $1.5 million, or $0.11 per diluted share, as compared to a loss of $3.4 million, or $0.24 per diluted share, in the corresponding period in 2016. Consolidated adjusted EBITDA was $2.3 million, as compared to $0.3 million for the corresponding 2016 period.
“Our investments in a first-class e-commerce team and systems over the last several years have enabled us to take advantage of the increasing penetration of online sales and to offset the impact of lower store traffic and soft consumer spending at traditional brick and mortar retail,” said Jeffrey Siegel, Lifetime’s chairman and CEO. “We are pleased that we made these investments early, as the cost of playing catch-up in the world of e-commerce is extremely high. We intend to continue to upgrade our IT and distribution systems to be able to capitalize on this continuing shift in consumer spending.”
He noted that the company is also beginning to see the strategic and financial benefits of a number of initiatives designed to accelerate the company’s growth and improve profitability.
Among those initiatives is Lifetime Next, a program company officials said is designed to assure that every part of its U.S. business is aligned with company goals. Conceived in late 2015 and implemented beginning in mid-2016, this program is expected to result in higher gross margins, reduced SG&A expenses per dollar of sales and a more optimal level of working capital, the company said.
Lifetime Brands is also undertaking improvements to its infrastructure, including plans now underway to relocate the company’s west coast distribution center to a new purpose-built leased facility that will be operational in early 2018 and to consolidate its European distribution into a new efficient warehouse location that is expected to be completed in 2019.
