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This blog will look at the winners and losers in the retail space. Who has the right strategy to capture consumer dollars? It also will look for trends in consumer spending and how that will impact the economy.
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Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia reported disappointing third-quarter results, and guided estimates for the fourth quarter lower Tuesday, but in an appearance on CNBC, company founder Martha Stewart was upbeat about the state of the consumer.
Stewart's been on a book tour for her latest cookbook, and said the experience—which she likened to a political campaign—has allowed her to take the pulse of the retail scene. (For the full interview, watch the video at left.)
"The customer is there," Stewart told CNBC, "and the customer wants good value. They want really good quality. They want products that fit their lifestyle at the present time when they are on, actually, some serious budgets."
She expects the company [MSO
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] she founded has an advantage in the current climate because it sells items what people need to use on an everyday basis: cookware, linens and food.
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Frank Franklin Ii / AP |
In the latest quarter, Martha Stewart Living narrowed its loss, as its merchandising business failed to offset weakness in its publishing segment. In addition, the company slashed its full-year forecast and estimated fourth-quarter results would be below analysts' estimates.
Despite the loss and the disappointing outlook, profit at the company's merchandising arm more than doubled as revenue jumped 33 percent.
"Our products are selling and are selling quite well," said Chairman Charles Koppelman, who appeared with Stewart on CNBC. "We are optimistic for 2009."
One surprising bright spot: the company's deal with KB Homes [KBH
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] to build Martha Stewart-branded communities. The homebuilding venture sold more homes in the latest quarter than it did in the third-quarter of last year, and plans to expand.
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Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes