GONZALES, La.–Crown Crafts finished its fiscal first quarter with net income of $538,000, down 13 percent from last year’s first quarter.
The company’s net sales registered $17.7 million, down 11 percent from the first quarter of last year. Although he termed the first-quarter results “positive,” E. Randall Chestnut, Crown Crafts’ chairman, president and chief executive officer, expressed disappointment in the company’s soft sales volume in a statement from the company. “We have experienced a reduced order flow and a shift in sales as retailers have addressed the effect of the economic downturn by reducing their inventory levels and altering their buying patterns,” Chestnut said.
Chestnut added that Crown Crafts’ “strong operating cash flow” should keep the company competitive as it manages in the difficult economy, and should benefit the company when a recovery takes place.