FORT WORTH, Texas, Sept. 5, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Tandy Leather Factory, Inc. (Nasdaq: TLF ) reported today that sales for the month of August were $6.3 million, up 7% compared to August 2012 sales of $5.8 million. Year to date sales are up 10% to $51.1 million in the current year compared to $46.6 million last year.
Retail Leathercraft's sales rose 12% to $3.8 million compared to August 2012 sales of $3.3 million. The 77 comparable stores' sales were up 11% compared to the same period last year. The one store opened after August 2012 added August sales of $48,000. Year-to-date sales for Retail Leathercraft are $30.6 million, a 14% increase over sales of $26.8 million for the same period of 2012. As of the end of August, the 77 comparable stores' sales were up 13% compared to sales reported for the same period in 2012.
Wholesale Leathercraft posted sales of $2.2 million for August, down 1% or $30,000, compared to August 2012 sales of $2.2 million. Within the Wholesale Leathercraft division, compared to August 2012, wholesale same store sales were down 1% while the National Account group's sales were flat. For the year to date, Wholesale Leathercraft sales are $17.9 million, up 1% from last year's sales of $17.7 million. As of the end of August, the wholesale same store sales were up 3% compared to the same period last year and the National Account group's sales were down 26%.
International Leathercraft reported August sales of $306,000, up 17% compared to August 2012 sales of $262,000. For the year to date, International Leathercraft sales were $2.6 million compared to $2.0 million last year, up 26%. All three stores in the segment have been opened for both periods, so same store sales for the month and year to date were the same as the segment's sales.
Chief Executive Officer and President, Jon Thompson, commented, "August sales results were positive, with most stores reporting solid sales gains. As was the case in June, we had several wholesale stores with sales declines, which is the cause of the negative same store sales for that segment. Our third quarter gross margin is historically the lowest of the year and we expect that to be the case this year. With that said, we are more than halfway through the quarter and gross margins are in line with our internal targets."
Shannon L. Greene, Chief Financial Officer added, "Our inventory continues to build this quarter as we are preparing for fourth quarter and the introduction of new products on October 1. At the same time, we are focused on expense control in order to maximize earnings in this last half of the year."
Tandy Leather Factory, Inc., ( http://www.tandyleatherfactory.com ), headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, is a specialty retailer and wholesale distributor of a broad product line including leather, leatherworking tools, buckles and adornments for belts, leather dyes and finishes, saddle and tack hardware, and do-it-yourself kits. The Company distributes its products through its 29 Leather Factory stores, located in 19 states and 3 Canadian provinces, 78 Tandy Leather retail stores, located in 37 states and 6 Canadian provinces, and three combination wholesale/retail stores located in the United Kingdom, Australia and Spain. Its common stock trades on the Nasdaq with the symbol "TLF". To be included on Tandy Leather Factory's email distribution list, go to http://www.b2i.us/irpass.asp?BzID=1625&to=ea&s=0 "> http://www.b2i.us/irpass.asp?BzID=1625&to=ea&s=0 .
This news release may contain statements regarding future events, occurrences, circumstances, activities, performance, outcomes and results that are considered "forward-looking statements" as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual results and events may differ from those projected as a result of certain risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties include but are not limited to: changes in general economic conditions, negative trends in general consumer-spending levels, failure to realize the anticipated benefits of opening retail stores; availability of hides and leathers and resultant price fluctuations; change in customer preferences for our product, and other factors disclosed in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These forward-looking statements are made only as of the date hereof, and except as required by law, we do not intend to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
Shannon L. Greene, Tandy Leather Factory, Inc. (817) 872-3200 or Mark Gilbert, Magellan Fin, LLC (317) 867-2839 or
