SANDPOINT, Idaho, July 23 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Coldwater Creek Inc. (NASDAQ:CWTR) reiterated its second quarter outlook provided in the Company's first quarter press release on May 27, 2009. The Company issued this announcement in conjunction with its Analyst Event scheduled to begin at 5:00 p.m. ET today in New York. The Company is scheduled to report second quarter results on Wednesday, August 26, 2009 after the market close. For the three-month period ending August 1, 2009, the Company expects: -- Net sales in the range of $215 million to $220 million, reflecting a same-store sales decline in the low double digit range and a direct sales decline in the high teens to low 20's range. This compares to actual second quarter fiscal 2008 net sales of $241.4 million; -- Loss per share of $0.05-$0.07, in line with previously issued guidance of a loss less than $0.08 per share. This compares to actual second quarter fiscal 2008 diluted earnings per share of $0.03; and -- Inventory at quarter end to decline in the mid-single digit range per square foot, as compared to inventory at the end of the second quarter last year. In addition, the Company remains on track to achieve its expense and balance sheet management goals for fiscal 2009, including: -- Delivering at least $30 million in SG&A savings for fiscal 2009 over fiscal 2008; and -- Ending the year with over $100 million in cash. Daniel Griesemer, president and chief executive officer of Coldwater Creek, commented: "We were pleased with the positive customer response to our summer collection as our improved merchandise assortment and value pricing initiative enabled us to drive a flat comp in May in a highly promotional environment. However, the strong sell through of our summer collection resulted in very lean inventory levels that limited our ability to drive sales during our quarterly sale event. Consistent with our previous guidance, we expect our second quarter to show a loss, but represent a sequential improvement in our business trends." Mr. Griesemer continued, "As we enter fall, we are well positioned to benefit from the meaningful changes we have made during the past year to improve the fashion sensibility, fit and value in our merchandise. We believe that it is the appropriate time to intensify our marketing efforts to showcase our fall collection and enhance brand awareness, and we have invested in inventory to capitalize on this opportunity. We are confident in our brand direction and believe we have taken the necessary steps to generate improved long-term results." Founded in 1984, and headquartered in Sandpoint, Idaho, Coldwater Creek is a leading specialty retailer of women's apparel, gifts, jewelry, and accessories. The company sells its merchandise through premium retail stores across the country, online at coldwatercreek.com and through its catalogs. CAUTIONARY STATEMENT REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION: This news release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the securities laws, including statements relating to our expected second quarter fiscal 2009 sales and loss per share and other future plans and financial results. These statements are based on management's current expectations and are subject to a number of uncertainties and risks, as well as assumptions that if they do not fully materialize or prove incorrect, could cause our actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from estimates or projections contained in the forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to: -- the inherent difficulty in forecasting consumer buying and retail traffic patterns and trends, which continue to be erratic and are affected by factors beyond our control, such as the current macroeconomic conditions and the global credit crisis, continuing heavy promotional activity in the specialty retail marketplace, and competitive conditions and the possibility that because of lower than expected customer response, or because of competitive pricing pressures, we may be required to sell merchandise at lower than expected margins, or at a loss; -- the possibility that our SG&A and cash projections will not be realized, due to changing business conditions, including our potential decision to invest opportunistically in our business; -- our potential inability to recover the substantial fixed costs of our retail store base due to sluggish sales; -- our potential inability to continue to fund our operations solely with operating cash as a result of either lower sales or higher than anticipated costs, or both; -- delays we may encounter in sourcing merchandise from our foreign and domestic vendors, including the potential inability of our vendors to finance production of the goods we order; risks related to our foreign sourcing strategy; and the possibility that foreign sourcing may not lead to any reduction of our sourcing costs or improvement in our margins; -- because we currently are carrying relatively low levels of inventory, we may not have sufficient merchandise to meet demand, which may result in lost sales and lower customer satisfaction; -- the effect of volatile energy costs on various aspects of our business, including shipping, transportation, merchandise acquisition and consumer spending; -- increasing competition from discount retailers and companies that have introduced concepts or products similar to ours; -- difficulties encountered in anticipating and managing customer returns and the possibility that customer returns will be greater than expected; -- the inherent difficulties in catalog management, for which we incur substantial costs prior to mailing that we may not be able to recover, and the possibility of unanticipated increases in mailing and printing costs; -- unexpected costs or problems associated with our efforts to manage our expanding and increasingly complex business, including our current efforts to improve key management information systems and controls; -- the risk that the benefits expected from our strategic initiatives will not be achieved or may take longer to achieve than we expect; and such other factors as are discussed in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"). We believe that these forward-looking statements are reasonable; however, you should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which are based on current expectations and speak only as of the date of this release. We are not obligated to publicly release any revisions to forward-looking statements to reflect events after the date of this release. We provide a detailed discussion of risk factors in periodic SEC filings, and you are encouraged to review these filings in connection with this release. Contact: Lyn Walther, Divisional Vice President, Investor Relations Phone: 208-265-7005 Web site: http://www.coldwatercreek.com/ DATASOURCE: Coldwater Creek CONTACT: Lyn Walther, Divisional Vice President, Investor Relations, of Coldwater Creek, +1-208-265-7005 Web Site: http://www.coldwatercreek.com/

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