Reiterating the late start in back-to-school sales, Clifton E. Sifford, executive vice president and general merchandise manager, attributed the trend to the challenging effect of changing styles. "I think part of the reason is the consumer is somewhat confused," Sifford said. "They know a new fashion trend is happening within the athletic arena but they don't know what to wear it with or how to pair it up with the apparel they want to wear. I think they got to school and saw what was happening and now they are in our store making their selection."

Yet, even with disappointing numbers in the last two weeks of its second quarter as a result of the back-to-school season, the company closed its Q2 with a 39% increase in profit, posting $2.7 million compared with net income of $1.9 million in the second quarter last year. The company attributed the gain to the increase in women's non-athletic products to make up 26.2% of total sales, up from 23.5% in the second quarter of 2004.

Diluted earnings per share increased 33% to 20 cents per share, in line with analysts' expectations, from 15 cents per share during 2004. The company reported a 7.6% increase in second quarter sales to $148.7 million from $138.1 million last year, while comparable store sales increased by 2.9% for the 13-week period.