Springs: Next year will be better

HTT Staff -- Home Textiles Today, 11/16/2011 4:07:33 PM

Sao Paulo, Brazil - Higher costs, slower sales and unfavorable exchange rates reduced sales and profits for Springs Global during the third quarter, but the company said it expects its performance to improve next year as new programs - including branded introductions in the United States - arrive at retail.

"In the U.S. the big push with a great team and great brands will start to generate great results," president Josue Gomes da Silva said during a quarterly conference call today to discuss earnings.

Particularly in the second half of 2012, the more affordable iterations of Springs' luxury brand developments such as DVF (from designer Diane Von Furstenberg) and Espacio Sami Hayek should gain traction.

In the U.S. operation, "we want to offer more innovation, better plans and more creativity," said da Silva. "And that's where our investment lies."

The contribution of sales to the United States and other markets outside Brazil fell to 50.9% of total revenues in the recent third quarter from 53.3% in the year-ago quarter. That's in line with a goal the company laid out a few years ago to reduce its dependence on the U.S. market.

Total net sales for the nine months ended Sept. 30 fell 23.2% to R$1.36 billion, or approximately $769 million US.

For the third quarter, total net sales fell 23.2% to R$442.6 million, or about $250 million US.