FORT WORTH, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Tandy Leather Factory, Inc. (AMEX: TLF) reported today that sales for the month of October were $4.9 million, up 3% from October 2006 sales of $4.7 million. Year to date sales are up 2% to $45.8 million in the current year from $45.1 million last year.
Retail Leathercraft posted a 5% sales increase for October, with sales totaling $2.1 million compared to $2.0 million in October 2006. The 62 comparable stores posted a 4% same store sales decline for the month. The 10 stores opened after September 2006 added sales for the month of $186,000. Year-to-date sales for Retail Leathercraft are $20.1 million this year, a 12% increase over sales of $17.9 million for the same period of 2006. As of the end of October, the same store sales gain for the 52 comparable stores is 2% for the year.
Wholesale Leathercraft posted sales of $2.6 million for October, up 4% from October 2006 sales of $2.3 million. Within the Wholesale Leathercraft division, the wholesale stores' same store sales were up 2% for the month while the National Account group posted an October sales decline of l%. Mid-Continent Leather Sales added sales of $55,000 for the month. For the year to date, Wholesale Leathercraft sales are $24.7 million compared to $25.4 million in 2006, a loss of 3%. The comparable wholesale stores posted a 3% sales decline for the year and National Accounts reported a 16% sales decline. Mid-Continent's year-to-date sales were $592,000.
Chief Executive Officer and President, Ron Morgan, commented, "The extra sales day in October helped us, although I was looking for stronger sales from the retail stores. I am pleased to see the same store sales gain at the wholesale stores though as this is only the third time this year we've been able to say that. And National Accounts missed equaling last year's October sales by only $3,000. Given their track record this year, I'll take it."
Tandy Leather Factory, Inc., (http://www.tandyleatherfactory.com), headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, is a specialty retailer and wholesale distributor of a broad product line including leather, leatherworking tools, buckles and adornments for belts, leather dyes and finishes, saddle and tack hardware, and do-it-yourself kits. The Company distributes its products through its 29 Leather Factory stores, located in 19 states and 3 Canadian provinces, 72 Tandy Leather retail stores, located in 32 states and 6 Canadian provinces, and Mid-Continent Leather Sales, one store located in Oklahoma. Its common stock trades on the American Stock Exchange with the symbol "TLF".
This news release may contain forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements made here or in other news releases issued by Tandy Leather Factory, Inc. are based on current expectations as of the date of the release. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause the results of Tandy Leather Factory, Inc. to differ materially from management's current expectations. Many of these risks and uncertainties are detailed from time to time in TLF's reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its most recent annual report on Form 10-K and the most recent quarterly report on Form 10-Q. Investors are reminded that past performance may not be predictive of future results.