Gottschalks misses Dec. goals, lowers outlook

FRESNO, Calif. Gottschalks Thursday said its December sales were below its expectations, mainly due to a difficult retail environment at its California locations.

The company announced that same-store sales for the month of December 2007 decreased 13.8% from the prior year. Total sales for the month decreased 15.2% to $112.8 million compared to $133.1 million in the same period of fiscal 2006.

Jim Famalette chairman and ceo, commented, "As a result of our December sales results and the current challenging retail environment, we now expect our fourth quarter results to be below our previous guidance."