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Warrendale-based rue21 Stores Plans 110 Openings in the Next Five Quarters, 500 in the Next Five Years
The following is culled from a SEC filing by Warrendale, PA-based rue21 on Friday, a link to which is provided at the end of this story:
Real Estate
- We drive sales growth through opening new stores, converting existing stores into our new, larger rue21 etc! layout and increasing our comparable store sales. In fiscal year 2009, we plan to open 88 new stores, including 78 new stores opened as of October 3, 2009. We also plan to convert 26 stores, including 24 stores converted as of October 3, 2009, to a larger layout that includes a separate rue21 etc! store-in-store. We believe our merchandising initiatives and new category introductions will further enhance our comparable store sales growth.
- We intend to drive our square footage growth by opening new stores and converting existing stores to our larger rue21 etc! layout. We believe there is a significant opportunity to expand our store base from 527 locations as of October 3, 2009 to more than 1,000 stores within five years. In fiscal year 2009, we plan to open 88 new stores, including 78 new stores opened as of October 3, 2009, and convert 26 stores, including 24 stores converted as of October 3, 2009. In fiscal year 2010, we plan to open approximately 100 new stores.
- The gross square footage of new stores opened in fiscal years 2008 and 2009 averaged approximately 4,700 square feet, which is larger than our historical store base and features a separate store-in-store for our rue21 etc! girls jewelry and accessories category. We have an ongoing strategy to convert our existing store base into the larger rue21 etc! layout which frequently involves relocating our stores. As a result, we have worked with our landlords to either convert or relocate our existing stores to attractively priced new locations, either in the same shopping center or in shopping centers in close proximity to the existing store, that would allow us to prominently showcase all of our product lines in a compelling store layout. In fiscal year 2008, we converted 21 stores to our rue21 etc! layout.
In the citybiz real estate coverage area, Rue Stores has the following number of stores:
Delaware: 1
Georgia: 37
Maryland: 6
Massachussetts: 3
New Jersey: 2
Pennsylvania: 24
Virginia: 11
Our Company
rue21 is a fast growing specialty apparel retailer offering the newest fashion trends for girls and guys at value prices. We operate over 500 stores in 43 states. Our merchandise is designed to appeal to 11 to 17 year olds who aspire to be "21" and adults who want to look and feel "21". We react quickly to market trends and our daily shipments to our stores ensure there is always new merchandise for our customers to discover. In addition, we offer our own brands, such as rue21 etc!, Carbon, tarea and rueKicks, to create merchandise excitement and differentiation in our stores. The energy in our stores and our focus on customer service, combined with our great value products, keep our customers returning to us. Through viral marketing and our interactive website, we continue to build a rueCommunity with a loyal customer base that will drive our growth into the future. The company and customer culture we have created invoke only one simple thought in the minds of most... Do you rue? I do!
We pursue a three-pronged strategy that focuses on diversification and growth. The key elements of our strategy are:
• Diversified Product - girls, guys, rue21 etc! We offer a broad range of girls and guys apparel, accessories, footwear, jewelry and fragrances. Over the last few years, we have expanded and developed a number of product categories to complement our extensive apparel offerings, including rue21 etc!, our girls jewelry and accessories category; tarea by rue21, our intimate apparel category; Carbon, our guys apparel and accessories category; rueKicks, one of our footwear lines; and a full line of fragrances for both girls and guys.
• Flexible Real Estate - strip centers, regional malls, outlet centers. As of October 3, 2009, approximately 51% of our stores were located in strip centers, 27% in regional malls and 22% in outlet centers. Our stores are located primarily in small- and middle-market communities that we believe have been underserved by traditional specialty apparel retailers. As a result, we are often the only junior and young men's specialty apparel retailer in such communities. In these markets, our limited competition comes from large value retailers and department stores.
• Balanced Growth - new stores, store conversions, comparable store sales. We drive sales growth through opening new stores, converting existing stores into our new, larger rue21 etc! layout and increasing our comparable store sales. In fiscal year 2009, we plan to open 88 new stores, including 78 new stores opened as of October 3, 2009. We also plan to convert 26 stores, including 24 stores converted as of October 3, 2009, to a larger layout that includes a separate rue21 etc! store-in-store. We believe our merchandising initiatives and new category introductions will further enhance our comparable store sales growth.