Yankee Candle swings to loss in Q3

South Deerfield, Mass. Yankee Holding Corp. and The Yankee Candle Co. announced Thursday that it posted a net loss of $0.7 million for the third quarter, compared with a profit of $6.7 million in the year-ago period.

Sales for the third quarter ended Oct. 3 were $168.7 million, a 4.2% decrease from the prior-year third quarter.

Retail comp sales, including the consumer-direct business, decreased by 5.6% compared with the prior-year quarter, driven primarily by declining mall traffic and consumer spending.

"Consumer spending patterns and weak retail traffic continued to impact both our retail and wholesale businesses and we therefore continue to manage our expenses carefully and focus intently on driving productivity and efficiency savings,” said Harlan Kent, CEO.

Retail sales were $76 million, an increase of $3.5 million or 4.8% from the third quarter of fiscal 2008.