EMERYVILLE Calif. Jamba Inc., the parent of 749 corporate or franchised Jamba Juice outlets, said Monday that continued same-store sales declines and restaurant impairment charges slurped away a year-ago profit for the third quarter and led to a net loss of $12.4 million.
The struggling smoothie chain posted a same-store sales drop of 10.3 percent at corporate locations for the quarter ended Oct. 7. Jamba operates 520 Jamba Juice outlets, the majority of which are based in California, whose economy has been hard hit by economic woes, especially in the housing sector.
Company officials said it would continue to implement turnaround initiatives to cut store-level costs and drive sales. Jamba mentioned new food opportunities, but did not disclose details.
“While we cannot control the difficult consumer economic conditions we find ourselves operating under, we are taking actions in a number of areas we can control, like strong cost controls and implementing other revenue initiatives,” said Steven Berrard, the company’s interim chief executive and president. “We have also gathered valuable insights from Jamba team members through recent field management meetings É to better address historical cannibalization, competitive threats, marketing and even new revenue opportunities like food.”
In the second quarter, Jamba introduced ready-to-drink beverages that are sold at retail outlets, cut jobs and closed locations. Earlier in the year the chain introduced breakfast offerings including granola-topped smoothies, a “chunky” smoothie eaten with a spoon and baked goods.
For the third quarter, Jamba posted a loss of $12.4 million, or 23 cents per share, compared with a year-ago profit of $22.4 million, or 40 cents per share. Latest-quarter revenues increased 3.6 percent to $86.6 million, as the company opened four new stores.
The company said its third quarter net loss would have totaled $6 million, compared with a loss of $700,000 a year ago, when excluding $5.9 million in store impairment, lease termination and store closure costs.
