Tandy Leather Factory, Inc. Reports April 2009 Sales Down 7% from April 2008

Business Wire, May 07, 2009

Retail Up 8%; Wholesale Down 19%

FORT WORTH, Texas -- Tandy Leather Factory, Inc. (AMEX: TLF) reported today that sales for the month of April were $4.4 million, down 7% from that of April 2008. Year to date sales are down 1% to $17.8 million in the current year from $18.0 million last year.

Retail Leathercraft’s sales rose 8% to $2.2 million compared to April 2008 sales of $2.0 million. The 72 comparable stores’ sales were up 6% for the month compared to the same period last year. The 2 stores opened since

April 2008 added April sales of $42,000. Year-to-date sales for Retail Leathercraft are $8.8 million this year, a 6% increase over sales of $8.3 million for the same period of 2008. As of the end of April, the 72 comparable stores’ sales were up 3% compared to sales reported for the same period in 2008.

Wholesale Leathercraft posted sales of $2.1 million for April, down 19% over April 2008 sales of $2.6 million. Within the Wholesale Leathercraft division, the wholesale centers’ sales were down 13% for the month while the National Account group’s sales were down 46% against April 2008. For the year to date, Wholesale Leathercraft sales are $8.4 million compared to $9.3 million in 2008, down 10%.

The UK store, which opened in February 2008 as a combination retail and wholesale store, added sales of $90,000 for the month and $383,000 for the year, compared to $43,000 and $84,000 for the comparable periods in 2008, respectively.

Chief Executive Officer, Ron Morgan, commented, “We knew April was going to be tough as we were up against a strong month last year. Our retail stores are doing well as April is the fifth consecutive month of sales gains. Our wholesale stores, on the other hand, have run sales losses for twelve consecutive months now. We will continue to look for ways to attract the wholesale customer without sacrificing margin but it’s going to take some time to get them buying consistently again. Many of our wholesale customers are struggling to just keep their doors open at this point.”

Shannon L. Greene, Chief Financial Officer added, “Despite our struggling Wholesale division, we are in solid financial shape to be successful. Our UK store continues to generate solid sales and grow its customer base, despite all of the negative reports on the UK economy. And a 6% same store sales gain at our retail stores is encouraging. 2009 will have its shares of challenges from a sales perspective, but we believe we are financially positioned to do well in spite of those challenges.”

Tandy Leather Factory, Inc., (http://www.tandyleatherfactory.com), headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, is a specialty retailer and wholesale distributor of a broad product line including leather, leatherworking tools, buckles and adornments for belts, leather dyes and finishes, saddle and tack hardware, and do-it-yourself kits. The Company distributes its products through its 29 Leather Factory stores, located in 19 states and 3 Canadian provinces, 74 Tandy Leather retail stores, located in 35 states and 5 Canadian provinces, one combination wholesale/retail store located in the United Kingdom, and Mid-Continent Leather Sales, one store located in Oklahoma. Its common stock trades on the American Stock Exchange with the symbol "TLF". To be included on Tandy Leather Factory’s email distribution list, go to http://www.b2i.us/irpass.asp?BzID=1625&to=ea&s=0.

This news release may contain statements regarding future events, occurrences, circumstances, activities, performance, outcomes and results that are considered “forward-looking statements” as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual results and events may differ from those projected as a result of certain risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties include but are not limited to: changes in general economic conditions, negative trends in general consumer-spending levels, failure to realize the anticipated benefits of opening retail stores; availability of hides and leathers and resultant price fluctuations; change in customer preferences for our product, and other factors disclosed in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These forward-looking statements are made only as of the date hereof, and except as required by law, we do not intend to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.