Burlington Stores, an off-price retailer of high-quality, branded apparel and footwear, posted 6 per cent sales decline to $1,664.7 million in its third quarter (Q3) FY20 ended on October 31, 2020 compared to sales of $1,774.9 million in same period previous fiscal. Company net income for Q3 dropped to $8.0 million (Q3 FY19: $96.4 million).
“We were pleased with the progress we made in the third quarter. After a challenging start in August, our comparable store sales trend improved significantly to minus 4 per cent in the combined September and October period. During the quarter, there were early signs of progress with our Burlington 2.0 off-price full potential strategy, as we chased the sales trends, took advantage of great opportunistic buys, and turned our inventories rapidly,” Michael O’Sullivan, CEO at Burlington Stores, said in a press release.
Gross margin rate was 45.0 per cent during Q3 FY20 (42.4 per cent) driven by a combination of lower markdowns and higher markup, which were partially offset by higher freight costs. Selling, general and administrative expenses were up to $645.2 million ($583.6 million).
“Unfortunately, the outlook remains uncertain and unpredictable, in fact the situation across the country with Covid-19 appears to be deteriorating. The fourth quarter has gotten off to a weak start with November month-to-date comparable store sales running down in the low double digits,” O’Sullivan said. “In this uncertain environment, we will continue to plan and manage our business conservatively.”
