Zumiez bucked the retail trend in the final quarter ended Jan. 28, seeing net income surge 38% to $18,184,000 from $13,149,000 on 9% higher sales at $263,635,000 vs. $242,434,000 as comp store sales increased 5.1% against a 9.5% decrease in Q4 last year and 33 new stores also boosted the top line. Gross margin was up 90 basis points to 35.7%.

Sales decelerated slightly in Feb., down 1% to $51.5 million on -3.1% comp decline compared to -8.6% comps last year, a result that was centered in the U.S, where late tax refund checks hurt late Jan. and early Feb. Men’s ... Log in to view full article.