Mothers Work

Mothers Work Inc. (Philadelphia) has announced a 3.5 percent increase in net sales for the month of December 2004. Same-store sales decreased 1.9 percent.

During December 2004, the Company opened one store (a multi- brand store) and closed 11 stores (six of them related to multi-brand store openings), ending the month with 880 stores and 1111 total retail locations.

Net sales increased 1.6 percent for the first quarter of fiscal 2005 ended Dec. 31, 2004, and same-store sales decreased 4.2 percent.

“We are pleased and cautiously encouraged by the significant improvement in our sales trend for December, especially in the latter half of December, compared to the significant comparable store sales decline we experienced during November,” said president and coo Rebecca Matthias. “Looking forward, we are very excited about our progress in developing our new strategic business initiatives, including our Kohl’s and Sears initiatives and our multi-brand store initiatives, to promote our continued long-term growth in sales and profitability, while addressing the increased competitive pressures in the maternity apparel market. In addition, we continue to work aggressively to monitor and control our inventory levels and our expenses.”