Direct Sales Slide 11% for Eddie Bauer

First-quarter direct sales at apparel cataloger Eddie Bauer Holdings fell 10.7%, to $56.9 million for the period ended April 4. Total sales for the quarter decreased 15.6%, to $179.8 million, down from $213.2 million.

Same-store sales fell 11.3. The Redmond, WA-based company reported that catalog circulation pages were down about 22.6% for the quarter, while catalog productivity was up approximately 11.2% on a more targeted mailing strategy. Net loss for the first quarter increased $25.2 million to $44.5 million.

Eddie Bauer president/CEO Neil Fiske noted in a release that “the sharp downturn in the economy took its toll on our sales” for the quarter. “We continued to focus on cost cutting and cash flow management, which helped mitigate the impact of lower sales.”