Delia's Sees 25% Growth

NEW YORK CITY-Teen apparel retailer Delia’s will grow its square footage by 25% this year, according to executives, from the 62 it currently operates east of the Mississippi. Last year, the company opened 11 units.

So far this year, Delia’s has opened three stores, all of them in the Dallas area, including one in upscale Northpark Center. “This is consistent with our structure to cluster and fill in new markets,” said Robert Bernard, the company’s chief executive officer, during Delia’s fourth-quarter conference call. The company has nine more leases signed so far this year.

Stores in the chain current average $325 per sf, and executives are pushing for them to reach $400 per sf. Additionally, they are shooting for low single-digit same-stores sales growth out of the units on a consistent basis.