The La Cañada Flintridge-based retailer known for its skiing and mountain-biking gear appears to have turned a sharp corner, with two straight profitable quarters and projections for a profitable year after five down years.
Sport Chalet, which has a retail store and its corporate headquarters just off Angeles Crest Highway, told investors during a conference call last week that the quarter that ended in October saw profits of $800,000 on sales of $91.5 million. Last year at the same time, the company made $600,000 on sales of $88 million, but then saw sales slump as a dry winter kept snow lovers off the slopes.
Sport Chalet Chief Executive and Chairman Craig Levra said that the chain is seeing the payoff from staff training, new software, more targeted product selection and the end of the Great Recession.
During the recession, Levra said, “We got pounded on the earnings side. We’ve improved where we’re back to profitability two quarters in a row.”