Spiegel, Inc., Downers Grove, IL, had 1998 net revenue of $2.935 billion, a 4% drop from $3.056 billion in 1997. The company had net earnings of $3.3 million, compared with a loss of $33 million a year earlier. For fourth-quarter 1998, the company had $1.017 billion in revenue, compared with $1.112 billion a year earlier, and $41.5 million in net earnings, compared with $31.9 million in fourth-quarter 1997.
The quarter and the year ended Jan. 2.
The decline in net sales for the quarter reflects a 13% decrease in catalog sales, a 4% decrease in retail sales and the impact of an additional week in last year’s fourth quarter. Excluding the fourteenth week in 1997, fourth quarter net sales would have shown a 5% decline.
The company attributed its lower catalog sales to a reduction in catalog pages circulated by Spiegel Catalog and lower customer response to the Eddie Bauer catalog mailings. Spiegel Group’s catalog businesses, including Spiegel Catalog, Eddie Bauer and Newport News, generated net sales of $1.311 billion in 1998, compared with $1.482 billion in 1997. The company’s retail stores, which are primarily Eddie Bauer, produced $1.331 billion in net sales for the year, compared with $1.353 billion in 1997.
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