The growth of the North American licensee was drivenby new product introductions such as Axcelerate sportswear and underwearas well as a growing footwear business. The brand predicted double digit gainsfor 2005, based on growth in these areas. The overall swimwear group had an 11%sales increase in Q4 ended Jan. 1 to $82,048,000 from $74,614,000, whileoperating income was up slightly to$15,754,000 from $15,325,000. Warnaco saidthe lower operating margin was due to investments in new product developmentand higher marketing expenses. The swimwear group for the year had a 5%increase in sales to $380,324,000 from $361,092,000 as operating income rose10% to $58,147,000 from ... Log in to view full article.