Direct Sales Up 9% at Coach

Third-quarter sales for luxury leather goods cataloger/retailer Coach slipped 1%, to $740 million, down from $745 million for the same period last year. For the period ended March 28, net income declined 24%, to $123 million, from $162 million.

On the bright side, Coach’s direct-to-consumer sales rose 9%, to $634 million, from $582 million last year. Its North American same-store sales decreased 4.2%.

Chairman/CEO Lew Frankfort in a release said the company had “enhanced the vibrancy of our franchise by providing our consumers with innovative, relevant product at a compelling value without going on sale in our retail stores. Our third quarter results demonstrate our resilience and ability to navigate through this challenging environment.”

What’s more, Frankfort said, “the steps that we’re taking to reduce our expense structure will help position Coach to enhance our profitability.”