Conn's Inc. Reports Record Results for Black Friday Weekend

Furniture World Magazine

Conn’s, Inc., a specialty retailer of home appliances, consumer electronics, computers, lawn and garden products, furniture and mattresses, announced preliminary sales results for Black Friday weekend. The Company preliminarily estimates that product sales and service maintenance agreement sales rose approximately 23% during the month of November 2008, as compared to the prior year period, on same store sales growth of approximately 12%. This growth was driven by a 64% increase on Black Friday, November 28th, as compared to Black Friday in the prior year, and a 50% increase for the entire weekend. Though the Company does not typically report monthly sales information, it is releasing the November information on a one-time basis due to the continuing turmoil in the economy. Consumer electronics sales continued to show strong growth, furniture and mattresses provided solid increases and appliances were slightly positive. About Conn’s, Inc.: The Company is a specialty retailer currently operating 76 retail locations in Texas, Louisiana and Oklahoma: 23 stores in the Houston area, 19 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 three in Oklahoma. 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, Blu-ray and 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. Unlike many of its competitors, the Company provides flexible in-house credit options for its customers. In the last three years, the Company has financed, on average, approximately 59% of its retail sales. Customer receivables are financed substantially through an asset based loan facility and an asset-backed securitization facility, from which the Company derives interest income and servicing fees. Under the securitization facility, the Company transfers receivables, consisting of retail installment contracts and revolving accounts extended to its customers, to a qualifying special purpose entity (QSPE) in exchange for cash and subordinated securities. The QSPE funds its purchases of the receivables through the issuance of medium-term and variable funding notes issued to third parties and secured by the receivables, and subordinated securities issued to the Company. In August 2008, the Company entered into an asset-based revolving credit facility to provide financing for a portion of its receivables, as well as other working capital needs. Receivables financed by this facility and amounts borrowed under the facility are carried on the Company’s balance sheet.