Restoration Hardtimes

Restoration Hardware Inc. (Costa Mesa, Calif.) announced that its same-store sales during the nine-week holiday shopping period would fall short of expectations.

The high-end home furnishings specialty retailer said sales for the period would be 1 to 2 percent above a year ago, compared to previous expectations of mid to high single-digit sales growth.

Similarly, the company now forecasts same-store sales for the fourth quarter ending Feb. 1, 2003, to increase approximately 2 to 4 percent, down from previous expectations of high single- to low double-digit growth.

The retailer insists that while these anticipated results are less than the previous forecast, they do represent record quarterly sales and earnings, “and clearly indicate the continued progress of the company's repositioning strategy.” Nonetheless, the company's stock fell 32 percent on the announcement, to $3.41 a share, during trading on Thursday, Jan. 2, 2003.

The purveyor of upscale home furnishings, hardware, garden products and decorative items, which began with one store in 1980 and enjoyed a spectacular rise in the 1990s, now operates 105 retail stores in 31 states, the District of Columbia and Canada.