After Another Quarterly Loss, HBC’s CEO Talks of a Better Future

Following a tough quarter, Hudson’s Bay Co. sees its performance improving in the second half as the retailer puts streamlinings and restructurings of previous seasons behind it to focus on the remaining Saks Fifth Avenue, Saks Off 5th and Hudson’s Bay divisions.
“I feel good about the holiday,” Helena Foulkes, HBC’s chief executive officer, told WWD on Thursday right after the company reported a second-quarter net loss from continuing operations of 462 million Canadian dollars, or U.S. $350 million, from $104 million, or U.S. $79 million, in the year-ago period. Comparable sales were down 0.4 percent.
The loss included 150 million Canadian dollars to write down the value of deferred tax assets. Early discounting in the quarter, which ended Aug. 3, and store closures, also negatively impacted the results.
Saks Off 5th did see comp sales rise 3.4 percent, driven by new customer growth. It was the off-pricer’s second quarter in a row reporting a comp sales gain.
Saks Fifth Avenue’s comp sales were up 0.6 percent, representing the ninth straight quarter for comp gains. Men’s, women’s ready-to-wear, handbags and beauty did best.
But comparable sales at Hudson’s Bay in Canada were down 3.4 percent.
Second-quarter revenues totaled $1.9 billion, roughly flat with a year ago. Foulkes

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