By McPherse Thompson, Staff Reporter 
Hayden Singh
INCREASED CREDIT sales from promotions such as the popular "Worl' O Cash" million dollar game, helped to improve the bottomline for Courts Jamaica, the island's largest retailer of furniture, during the three months to the end of June this year.
The furniture store, which has branches in all of the island's major towns, recorded a 22.5 per cent increase in turnover for the quarter, moving from just under $786 million to $963.3 million.
According to a report on the unaudited results published recently over the signature of Hayden Singh, the company's managing director, the improved revenue was largely attributable to increased sales from promotions undertaken during the period.
Margins were ahead of both budget and prior year, despite operating in a difficult and competitive market. Mr. Singh told Wednesday Business that the improved performance also arose from "several things that we have been doing," including the effect of a cost cutting exercise, which has enhanced efficiencies in the business.
As part of the cost cutting measures, Courts closed two of its regional warehouses in Montego Bay and Mandeville during the period under review.
Mr. Singh explained that those warehouses were not serving their intended purposes, and as a result, the company has decided to build a larger storage area to replace those closed. The new 100,000 square-foot facility is currently under construction at Twickenham Close, St. Catherine and is expected to be opened by the end of October, this year. It will be used as a central facility to warehouse furniture for islandwide delivery to the various branches.
The Courts managing director said staff who were affected by the closure of the two warehouses were redeployed to the various branches.
Courts also noted in the results that efforts to improve the debtors portfolio continued to show positive results, with bad debt costs for the period lower than forecast. "Further improvements are expected during the year as we reap the benefit of centralising our arrears functions in four locations," said the report.
Mr. Singh said that as part of the move to reduce its bad debt portfolio, the company was "trying to work with customers" who have taken furniture on hire purchase, but who might be finding it difficult to meet their obligations.
"We want to say to our customers that if you are finding it difficult to pay, don't hide, come in and talk to us so that we can work out some agreement with you," he said.
According to the company's balance sheet, at the end of the quarter under review, receivables stood at about $992.8 million, a marginal improvement on the $1.1 billion during the same period the year before, and just over $1 billion during the quarter to the end of March 2002.
Courts said the authorised share capital of the company was increased at an extraordinary general meeting held on July 17, this year. A 1:3 bonus was agreed to be issued to members on record at the close of business on September 27.
It also said that sales for the first few weeks of the second quarter continued to be encouraging and ahead of last year.
For the three months to June 30, Courts saw its operating profit skyrocket to $239.4 million from just under $53 million the previous year. Profit after tax was also encouraging, moving to $209 million from $157.6 million during the same period last year.
There was also a significant improvement on the company's cash and short term deposits, which grew to $848.9 million from $189.3 million during the quarter to June 2001, and which stood at $544.5 million at the end of March 2002.
