Delia’s CFO announces resignation; retailer posts disappointing first quarter

New York -- Teen retailer Delia’s announced that its CFO, David Dick, has resigned. He will remain with the company through Aug. 1.



“I want to thank Dave for his hard work and dedication to Delia’s throughout the last six years,” said CEO Tracy Gardner. “He was actively involved in helping the company navigate a number of challenges and was instrumental in securing recent financing that is central to the execution of Delia’s’ strategy going forward. On behalf of the entire company, I wish him well in his future endeavors.”



Dick’s resignation coincided with the company’s first-quarter results, which continued on a downward slide. Total revenue decreased 26.3% to $25.9 million, from $35.2 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2013. Comparable sales, including comparable store sales and direct-to-consumer sales, fell 24.7%, primarily driven by reduced website and mall traffic.



In addition, catalog circulation for the quarter decreased 15.2%, compared to the prior year quarter predominantly due to a reduction in unprofitable circulation.



Gardner struck an upbeat note and said she was encouraged by the chain’s first quarter progress in what continues to be a challenging macro retail environment.



“While our total revenues decreased 26% in the first quarter, our comparable store performance was down 21% and sequentially improved each month of the quarter,” said Gardner. “Our merchandise margin rates, inclusive of obsolescence, were rebuilt to the highest level we have seen in the last six quarters as we delivered merchandise margin dollars that were only down 13% on a comparable store basis. This improvement in merchandise margin levels is an important first step that we would expect to see at this point in our turnaround.”