Down the May Pole

The May Department Stores Co. (St. Louis) announced that net earnings tumbled 17.7 percent in the fiscal second quarter ending Aug. 4, 2001, though sales increased 1.6 percent. Same-store sales decreased 3.1 percent for the quarter.

For the six months ended Aug. 4, 2001, net earnings dropped 13.7 percent, though sales increased 2.6 percent. Same-store sales fell 2.1 percent.

Year-to-date, May has opened 11 of the 22 new department stores it planned to build in 2001: a Lord & Taylor store in Dallas; six Hecht's stores (five in Nashville and one in Bowie, Md.); and four Foley's stores (one in Dallas, two in Baton Rouge, La., and one in Lafayette, La.). The stores remaining to open this year include four Lord & Taylor stores, three Foley's stores, and one store each for Hecht's, Robinsons-May, Kaufmann's and Famous-Barr. David's Bridal has opened 15 stores year-to-date and will open an additional 13 stores by year-end. At the end of the second quarter, the company was operating 432 department stores and 137 David's Bridal stores in 43 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.