Bebe same store sales jump 8%

Bebe stores CEO Jim Wiggett credited a compelling merchandise assortment with helping to drive the company’s success in the second quarter.

“Our same store sales increased 8%, driven by strong sell through of our merchandise across all regions,” Wiggett said. “We ended the quarter with clean inventory levels and a compelling merchandise assortment that we believe will help to drive continued momentum for the company. We are encouraged by the recent performance in our business and will continue to focus on making ongoing enhancements to our product offering, merchandising stores by lifestyle, broadening the bebe brand appeal, and maintaining a compelling fashion/value equation for our customers. Our top priorities remain to drive improved results in both sales and gross margin, as well as to preserve cash, and we believe that we are headed in the right strategic direction to achieve these objectives.”

For the second quarter, the company's gross profit increased 14% to roughly $47.9 million from the comparable prior-year quarter. Bebe reported revenue of $128.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $126.70 million. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis.

Bebe currently operates 170 bebe retail stores including the on-line store bebe.com, and 36 bebe outlet stores.