Cherokee Inc. Reports Loss of $3.18 Million

Cherokee Inc. posted a fiscal third-quarter loss of $3.18 million on a 15% drop in sales compared with a year earlier.

The Sunland-based apparel and shoe manufacturer’s loss in the quarter ended Feb. 29, which compared with a year-earlier loss of $391,000, stemmed in large part from interest payments on its debt.

But a “slowdown in women’s apparel sales at retail, especially in California,” also played a role, Cherokee said. The company’s operating income before taxes and debt costs tumbled 46% from a year earlier, to $4.6 million from $8.5 million.

For the first nine months of its fiscal year, Cherokee lost $4.54 million, compared with a year-earlier loss of $1.71 million, and its nine-month sales fell 15%, to $149.4 million from $176.8 million.