Net income was $6,628,000 against $5,421,000 for theperiod ended Aug. 30. Approximately 11¢ of the 37¢ EPS was due to a lowereffective tax rate that will be offset by a higher rate in the next threequarters. Gross profit percentage improved 420 basis points to 45.7%.

Q1 total sales rose 5% to $128,971,000 from$123,278,000. By segment, retail sales improved 7% to $37.1 million as same storesales increased 13.7%; wholesale sales declined 3% to $53.9 million andinternational sales jumped 15% to $38.0 million. Better retail salesperformance was attributed to better merchandise assortments and betterin-stock positions. Girls and apparel posted the largest increases.

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