Data & Analytics

Corte Madera, Calif. -- Restoration Hardware Holdings Inc. reported Friday a loss of $28.4 million for the quarter ended Feb. 2, compared with a profit of $24 million in the year-ago period. Results, impacted by costs associated with the company’s November 2012 IPO, edged analysts’ expectations.

Revenue surged 30% to $398.1 million from $305.2 million last year, beating Wall Street’s forecast of $390.5 million. Same-store sales advanced a hefty 26%.

New York -- The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday that J.C. Penney is now in talks with Wells Fargo and at least two other investment firms, seeking a $500 million loan to shore up the beleaguered retailer’s cash reserves.

Citing unidentified sources, WSJ said that Penney is also in talks with private-equity firm TPG and with investment company Gordon Brothers, along with Wells Fargo, as Penney casts a wider net to stay afloat.

London -- A Thursday report by Bloomberg said that retail sales in the U.K. fell a more-than-expected 0.8% (excluding fuel) in March compared to February, impacted by unseasonably cold weather and a still-sluggish economy.

By Gregg Clark, [email protected]

Boston -- Research findings released Thursday by mobile-retail marketer Swirl found that a full 76% of women prefer shopping in stores over shopping via their smartphones.

“What Women Want When Apparel Shopping,” which polled 1,000 women shoppers, also revealed that 53% of women have between one and five shopping apps on their smartphones. Yet, still, they opt for the store experience.

I recently attended Chain Store Age’s 49th annual Store Planning, Equipment, Construction and Facilities Services Seminars (SPECS) in Dallas, Texas. While SPECS always gives me plenty to think about, this year was especially interesting thanks to the debut of a new segment on Real Estate Development. In addition to other workshop “tracks” like Facilities, Business Strategies, and Planning & Design, the inclusion of Real Estate Development to the mix really brought new (and important) perspectives.

New York -- Dick Lynch has joined the SD Retail Consulting division of Hilco Trading as SVP merchandising and strategy.

In his new role, Lynch will be responsible for helping retailers create shareholder value through process, organization and technology enhancements in the key merchandising and inventory management functions. He will also play a key role in assisting management, owners and lenders in shareholder value creation assignments.

New York -- Sherwin-Williams Co. reported a sales increase of 1.4% in the first quarter ended March 31, thanks to higher volume in the Paint Stores Group. The company expects to open 70 to 80 paint stores in 2013.
Net income increased 16% to $116.2 million.

The company's consolidated net sales increased 1.4% to $2.17 billion. The Paint Stores Group saw sales increase 4.0% to $1.17 billion in the quarter. The company pointed to higher architectural paint sales volume across all end-market segments. Comp-store sales for paint stores increased 3.2%.