Conn's Reports On Impact of Hurricane Gustav

Furniture World Magazine

Conn’s, Inc., a specialty retailer of home appliances, consumer electronics, computers, lawn and garden products, furniture and mattresses, reported on the initial impact of Hurricane Gustav. In advance of the landfall of the hurricane, the Company closed its six stores in Louisiana and four stores in Southeast Texas, as well as its service and distribution operations in those markets, early on Saturday, August 30th, and expects to reopen most, if not all, of these locations Tuesday. Any of the affected operations not reopened today will be reopened as soon as conditions are safe for a return. Additionally, the Company successfully relocated its corporate headquarters’ personnel, including credit granting and collections, to its Houston and Dallas, Texas, business continuity sites. There has not been any impact on the Company’s other store, service or distribution operations, including the San Antonio, Texas, collection center, as a result of the hurricane or the Company’s relocation of its corporate offices. Despite the closure of the stores, preliminarily the Company estimates that total product and service maintenance agreement sales increased by a low double-digit percentage and same store sales were slightly positive for the month of August; these amounts are under review and subject to change. Though the Company does not typically report monthly sales information, it is releasing the August information on a one-time basis due to the extraordinary nature of the events connected with Hurricane Gustav. About Conn’s, Inc.: The Company is a specialty retailer currently operating 73 retail locations in Texas, Louisiana and Oklahoma: 23 stores in the Houston area, 18 in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex, 10 in San Antonio, five in Austin, five in Southeast Texas, one in Corpus Christi, four in South Texas, six in Louisiana and one in Oklahoma City. It sells home appliances, including refrigerators, freezers, washers, dryers, dishwashers and ranges, and a variety of consumer electronics, including LCD, plasma and DLP televisions, camcorders, digital cameras, computers and computer accessories, DVD players, video game equipment, portable audio, MP3 players, GPS devices and home theater products. The Company also sells lawn and garden products, furniture and mattresses, and continues to introduce additional product categories for the home to help respond to its customers' product needs and to increase same store sales.