Zumiez didn’t really have the greatest news to report yesterday during their Q2 conference call (click here for a complete transcript). Their same store sales were down 18.8 percent vs. last year, total sales fell $6.5 million, and they operated on a loss of $3 million ($.10 a share) for the quarter (down from a $2.7 profit a year ago). But, it wasn’t as bad as analysts thought, according to a story in Puget Sound Business Journal.
Over at Pacific Sunwear things were a little different. Their Q2 same store sales dropped 24 percent and they had a net loss of $14.2 million ($.22 a share) for the quarter.
Discussions on Twitter yesterday were asking why there was such a difference between two retail chains that basically sell the same product in the same malls. To us the answer is obvious. From the sales people at the mall all the way up to the executives running the company, Zumiez knows that first and foremost they are selling a lifestyle. And they know that in order to sell the style they need to be connected to the life. This shows in Zumiez promotions, branding, and especially in their employees. PacSun, on the other hand, appears to be simply trying to sell clothing.
This is why, more than anything else, we believe Zumiez is doing better the PacSun in what is a pretty dismal market. And with Zumiez stock up 17 percent this morning and PacSun is down 12 percent, it would appear that the street agrees.
[Link: Puget Sound Business Journal, Forbes, and Seeking Alpha]
