Quaker fabric posts solid '97: sales, profits jump.
FALL RIVER, Mass. -- Quaker Fabric Corp. reported net sales and net income up for its fiscal year ended Jan. 1, 1998.Quaker, one of the country's leading fabric mills, reported net sales of $219.17 million and net income of $11.11 million for the 52-week fiscal year ended Jan. 3, 1998; compared to net sales of $198.86 million and net income of $8.56 million for the 53-week fiscal year ended Jan. 4, 1997.
Results of operations for the 13-week fourth quarter of 1997 were net sales of $58.37 million and net income of $2.72 million; compared to net sales of $58.14 million and net income of $3.44 million for the corresponding 14-week fiscal period of 1996.
President and chief executive Larry Liebenow attributed the gain to a strengthened product line that includes the new Quaker Plush and the company's penetration of the office furniture market.
"The market's strong response to our product line, confirms our status as the industry standard setter when it comes to product innovation, but it has presented two major challenges for us," he added.
"Our delivery cycle is generally longer than we like to see it and both our growth and the commitment we have made to providing our customers with the best delivery performance possible, despite our capacity constraints, are continuing to put pressure on our margins.
"The relative weakness in our fourth quarter gross margin is attributable to the same factors that affected us during the third quarter: the cost of preparing for the arrival of our new equipment; heavy hiring, training and overtime costs, and some deterioration in our manufacturing efficiencies as our newest employees move through their learning curves," said Liebenow.
Quaker Fabric Corp. is a leading manufacturer of woven upholstery fabrics for furniture markets in the United States and abroad.
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| Publication: | HFN The Weekly Newspaper for the Home Furnishing Network |
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| Article Type: | Brief Article |
| Date: | Feb 23, 1998 |
| Words: | 306 |
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