DESPITE COVID-19 LOCKDOWNS, NET SALES WERE
FLAT COMPARED TO LAST YEAR
MONTREAL, Jan. 14, 2021 /CNW Telbec/ - Birks Group Inc.
(the "Company" or "Birks Group") (NYSE American: BGI), today
reported its sales results for the interim holiday sales period
from November 1, 2020 through
December 26, 2020 (the "FY2021
Holiday Period").
For the FY2021 Holiday Period, net sales were 0.2% lower than
last year, primarily due to a 1.8% decrease in comparable store
sales, driven by temporary store closures due to COVID-19
restrictions in certain regions in Canada. As a result of various provincial
health restrictions, seven of the Company's 29 retail locations,
including its flagship Bloor Street
store in Toronto, were temporarily
closed for in-person shopping for the majority of the holiday
season. When excluding the seven stores that were temporarily
closed for in-person shopping during the FY2021 Holiday Period,
comparable stores sales increased by 6.8%. Furthermore,
e-commerce sales increased by 176.0% during the FY2021 Holiday
Period. See below under "Comparable Store Sales" for a
definition of this performance measure.
Mr. Jean-Christophe Bédos, President and Chief Executive Officer
of Birks Group, commented: "Despite the COVID-19 pandemic and its
negative impact, we have delivered good holiday results,
highlighting our ability to adapt to emerging trends to better
serve our clients, such as through our growing e-commerce business
and our concierge service. We are very proud of the results
achieved and fully appreciate the contributions of our management
team and employees, whose dedication, professionalism and ability
to adapt has allowed the Company to successfully navigate through
these uncertain times."
Mr. Bédos further commented: "While some of our boutiques
continue to be temporarily closed for in-store shopping, there are
still a number of ways for clients to access Maison Birks' elevated client service. Through
our Concierge Service, virtual appointments and e-commerce, we are
available for our clients and able to help them shop safely during
this time. MaisonBirks.com is the #1 e-commerce destination in
Canada for luxury watches and
jewellery. We remain committed to, and recently invested in
technological equipment for the purpose of offering the highest
possible quality in individualized video shopping to our
clients."
In accordance with current provincial restrictions to address
the "second wave" of the COVID-19 pandemic, 16 of the Company's
stores in Quebec and Ontario, including its flagship stores in
Montreal and Toronto, and its Winnipeg store in Manitoba, have been temporarily closed for
in-person shopping (Quebec until
at least February 8, 2021 and
Ontario until at least
February 9, 2021). The
Company's remaining 13 stores in British
Columbia, Alberta and
Saskatchewan remain open for
in-store shopping. Clients can make arrangements for curbside
pickup through Maison Birks'
Concierge Service by phone at +1 (855) 873-7373 and email at
info@birks.com. Select boutiques are also offering virtual
appointments, where clients can receive elevated service through
video chat. Virtual appointments can be scheduled online at
https://www.maisonbirks.com/en/virtual-appointment.
Clients can continue to shop online 24/7 at MaisonBirks.com and
benefit from complimentary shipping across Canada.
Comparable Store Sales
We use comparable store sales as a key performance measure for
our business. Comparable store sales include stores open in the
same period in both the current and prior period. We include
e-commerce sales in our comparable store sales calculations. Stores
enter the comparable store calculation in their thirteenth full
month of operation under our ownership. Stores that have been
resized or relocated are evaluated on a case-by-case basis to
determine if they are functionally the same store or a new store
and then are included or excluded from comparable store sales,
accordingly. Comparable store sales measure the percentage change
in net sales for comparable stores in a period compared to the
corresponding period in the previous year. If a comparable store is
not open for the entirety of both periods, comparable store sales
measure the change in net sales for the portion of time that such
store was open in both periods. We believe that this measure
provides meaningful information on our performance and operating
results. However, readers should know that this financial measure
has no standardized meaning and may not be comparable to similar
measures presented by other companies.
About Birks Group Inc.
Birks Group is a leading designer of fine jewellery, timepieces
and gifts and operator of luxury jewellery stores in Canada. The Company operates 29 stores, of
which 26 stores operate under the Maison Birks brand in most major
metropolitan markets in Canada,
one retail location in Calgary
under the Brinkhaus brand, one retail location in Vancouver operated under the Graff brand and
one location in Vancouver under
the Patek Philippe brand. Bijoux Birks fine jewellery collections
are also available through Mappin & Webb and Goldsmiths
locations in the United Kingdom in
addition to several jewellery retailers across North America. Birks was founded in 1879 and
has become Canada's premier
retailer and designer of fine jewellery, timepieces and gifts.
Additional information can be found on Birks' web site,
www.birks.com.
Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains certain "forward-looking" statements
which can be identified by their use of words like "plans,"
"expects," "believes," "will," "anticipates," "intends,"
"projects," "estimates," "could," "would," "may," "planned,"
"goal," and other words of similar meaning. All statements that
address expectations, possibilities or projections about the
future, including without limitation, statements about our
strategies for growth, expansion plans, sources or adequacy of
capital, expenditures, store closings and openings, comparable
store sales, and financial results are forward-looking
statements.
Because such statements include various risks and uncertainties,
actual results might differ materially from those projected in the
forward-looking statements and no assurance can be given that the
Company will meet the results projected in the forward looking
statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not
limited to the following: (i) the magnitude and length of economic
disruption as a result of the worldwide COVID-19 outbreak,
including its impact on (a) macroeconomic conditions, generally,
(b) the results of operations and financial condition of the
Company, (c) the Company's revenue as a result of store closures
and related measures to mitigate the financial impact of these
closures, including reducing operating expenses and extending
payment terms with various stakeholders, (d) capital investments in
technology, and (e) the trading price of its shares; (ii) economic,
political and market conditions, including the economies of Canada
and the U.S., which could adversely affect the Company's business,
operating results or financial condition, including its revenue and
profitability, through the impact of changes in the real estate
markets, changes in the equity markets and decreases in consumer
confidence and the related changes in consumer spending patterns,
the impact on store traffic, tourism and sales; (iii) the impact of
fluctuations in foreign exchange rates, increases in commodity
prices and borrowing costs and their related impact on the
Company's costs and expenses; (iv) changes in interest rates; (v)
the Company's ability to maintain and obtain sufficient sources of
liquidity to fund its operations, to achieve planned sales, gross
margin and net income, to keep costs low, to implement its business
strategy, maintain relationships with its primary vendors, to
mitigate fluctuations in the availability and prices of the
Company's merchandise, to compete with other jewelers, to succeed
in its marketing initiatives, and to have a successful customer
service program; (vi) the Company's ability to continue to borrow
under its credit facilities, (vii) the Company's ability to
maintain profitable operations, as well as maintain specified
excess availability levels under its credit facilities, make
scheduled payments of principal and interest, and fund capital
expenditures; (viii) the Company's financial performance; (ix) the
Company's ability to execute its strategic vision; * the Company's
ability to continue as a going concern; and (xi) the Company's
ability to achieve compliance with the NYSE American's continued
listing standards within the required time frame. Information
concerning factors that could cause actual results to differ
materially is set forth under the captions "Risk Factors" and
"Operating and Financial Review and Prospects" and elsewhere in the
Company's Annual Report on Form 20-F filed with the Securities and
Exchange Commission on July 8, 2020 and subsequent filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company undertakes no
obligation to update or release any revisions to these
forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after
the date of this statement or to reflect the occurrence of
unanticipated events, except as required by law.
SOURCE Birks Group Inc.