Haverty Furniture Reports Sales For May

Furniture World News

Havertys' May sales increased 6.9% to $61.8 million, compared with $57.8 million in May 2004. On a comparable-store basis, May sales increased 1.2%. Comparable-store sales do not include stores or locations opened, closed or otherwise non-comparable during the last 12 months. Sales for the first five months of 2005 increased 9.5% to $334.5 million compared with $305.4 million in 2004. On a comparable-store basis, sales increased 4.6% for the first five months. Clarence H. Smith, president and chief executive officer, said, "For May, sales of casual dining merchandise were very strong and all upholstery categories increased nicely. The overall average price per SKU and the average sales ticket were both up modestly. "Written sales orders for the month of May increased by a low single-digit percent in total, with comparable-store sales decreasing by a low single-digit percent relative to the same month last year. Memorial Day weekend written sales orders this year were off in the low to mid single-digit percent range for total and comp-store sales. We are pleased that written orders for early June have increased by a mid single-digit percent for comparable stores versus the same time period last year." Havertys is a full-service home furnishings retailer with 118 showrooms in 16 states in the Southern and Midwestern regions providing its customers with a wide selection of quality merchandise in middle- to upper-middle price ranges. Additional information is available on the Company's website at http://www.havertys.com/.