Luxury department-store operator Neiman Marcus Group Inc. on Tuesday privately reported quarterly earnings to bondholders, saying that sales rose from 2019 levels at both its 44 physical stores and online, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. The company, which was under bankruptcy protection last year and no longer reports public financial results, recorded another profitable quarter, marking the continuation of a sharp turnaround from deep losses last year brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. Neiman posted a 6% jump in same-store sales and a 7% increase in online sales for the quarter ended in July, compared with two years earlier, before the pandemic disrupted retail. Same-store sales include sales from stores open at least a year and strip out numbers from stores the company closed. The luxury retailer’s latest results show that it is benefiting from cost cuts made in bankruptcy, including store closures, as well as from pent-up demand following the widespread reopening of stores and the acceleration of vaccinations in the spring, a person familiar with the matter said. Total revenue in the latest quarter declined from 2019 because of store closures. For the quarter ended in April, same-store sales had shown a rebound compared with 2020 levels but were down compared with 2019 levels. Neiman filed for bankruptcy in May 2020 and emerged from chapter 11 in September 2020. Its stores were closed between March and July 2020 due to pandemic restrictions. (Subscription required.)
