Jim Hjelm's Private Collection, Ltd. reports fiscal 1995 first quarter

Business Wire, March 21, 1995

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 21, 1995--Jim Hjelm's Private Collection, Ltd. (NASDAQ:JHPC), a designer, manufacturer and marketer of wedding apparel, today said that for the first quarter of fiscal 1995 ended Jan. 31, 1995, revenues were $1,740,306, a 14 percent increase on revenues of $1,526,747 for the like quarter a year ago.

Net income for the first quarter of fiscal 1995 totalled $59,213, or $.05 per share, compared to net income of $135,826, or $.11 per share, for the comparable quarter last year. The prior year's first quarter income included a cumulative effect of change in accounting principle of $75,000, or $.06 per share.

Joseph L. Murphy, president, attributed JHPC's first quarter revenue gain to sales contributed by the company's new Occasions bridesmaids dress line and moderately priced Pure Romance bridal line. Murphy said first quarter revenues were also bolstered by increases in sales of the company's Lazaro contemporary classic line of bridal gowns.

Murphy added that during the first quarter, the company's product mix continued to move away from high-end, traditional dresses to more moderately priced, simply styled bridal lines, which he said are continuing to gain preference in the market. He said he believes this trend would continue and that JHPC has positioned itself to take competitive advantage of this trend in the quarters ahead.

Murphy noted that the company increased costs in launching its new product lines during the past year. He said management was exploring methods for reducing costs without impacting future revenue growth.

Jim Hjelm Private Collection, Inc., founded in 1987 and based in New York City, is the nation's only publicly traded manufacturer of wedding apparel. In addition to the Lazaro, Pure Romance and Occasions lines, the company markets the high-end, traditional-styled Jim Hjelm's Private Collection.

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