Superior Uniform Group, Inc. (Nasdaq:SGC), manufacturer of uniforms, career apparel and accessories, today announced that for the first quarter ended March 31, 2009, loss from continuing operations was $(502,945) or $(0.08) per share (diluted) compared to earnings from continuing operations of $914,808 or $.14 per share (diluted) reported for the quarter ended March 31, 2008. Net sales for the 2009 first quarter were $23,716,094 compared with 2008 first quarter sales of $33,282,630.
In making the earnings announcement, Michael Benstock, Chief Executive Officer, stated: “The current economic environment in the United States has been more challenging than almost any time in our 85 plus years in business. Our customers are delaying expansions, reducing locations, reducing headcounts and experiencing lower employee turnover than ever. To sum it up, fewer available jobs coupled with less attrition results in lower net sales of uniforms. Additionally, our customers are being more cost conscious and are delaying purchases of new uniforms whenever possible. As a result of these significant declines in our revenue, we have implemented aggressive cost reduction initiatives to limit the impact on our results of operations. These initiatives are aimed at eliminating nonessential positions, streamlining our existing processes and shifting administrative positions to our Central American subsidiary where possible. As a result of these initiatives, we have eliminated approximately $3.8 million in payroll and related benefits on an annual basis. These specific initiatives were started during the first quarter of 2009 and are expected to produce total payroll related savings during fiscal 2009 of approximately $2.9 million. These initiatives are in addition to prior year staff reductions and tight operating expense controls that we have implemented.
