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  West 49 improves bottom line

West 49 Inc., the industry’s largest retail customer in Canada, improved its bottom line numbers in the third quarter despite the tough retail environment, the company said this morning.

Better terms from vendors was one of the reasons cited for the improved results.

Here’s a short summary of West 49’s the company’s third quarter earnings. I also listened to its conference call. Executive Edition members, click here to read a more detailed report about West 49’s performance.

Total sales: down 3.7% to $59.4 million

Company same-store sales: down 6%

West 49 banner same-store sales: down 1.2%

Gross margin: improved to 27.9% vs. 26.1% the same period last year.

SG&A: down by $0.6 million to $10.7 million.

Net income: up 38% to $2.9 million

No. of stores: 133