Pier 1 reports $29M loss

Pier 1 Imports reported Tuesday it had swung to a loss of $29.4 million for the fourth-quarter ending Feb. 28, as sales fell to $389 million from $437 million.

The company had earned $13.7 million in the year-earlier quarter.

Pier 1 attributed the decline in fourth-quarter sales to the overall economic environment, a reduction in store count, and a decline in comparable-store sales of 9.7%.

For the fiscal year ended Feb. 28, the company reported a net loss of $129 million, vs. a net loss of $96 million for last year. Total sales for the fiscal year declined to $1,321 million, from $1,512 million last year.

Pier 1 president and CEO Alex W. Smith said, “Fiscal 2009 was not the year we anticipated that it would be, but despite all the challenges faced as a result of the economic environment, we were able to end the year with clean inventory levels and a strong cash position.

“We believe that we are well-positioned heading into this fiscal year to meet the continuing challenges of this environment and to emerge on the other side of this recession a stronger, leaner, and more efficient Pier 1 Imports.”

Pier 1 began the fiscal year with 1,092 Pier 1 Imports stores in North America. As a result of on-going negotiations with its landlords to achieve rental reductions across its store portfolio, the company has now reached agreements in principal to terminate the leases on 20 stores and will close two additional stores for which termination or rental reduction agreements have not been reached. The company said it still expects to close no more than 80 locations in fiscal 2010.