The good news for Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia (MSO) is that their revenue for the first quarter increased by 7.4 percent over last year's first quarter. The bad news is that they also posted larger losses of $11.87 million, close to twice last year's first quarter loss of $6.84 million.
Most of the problem was concerning the expenses related to producing "The Martha Stewart Show," which came in at $5.7 million.
Since Stewart was sent to jail after her scandal, the company has been fighting an uphill battle to grow back to profitability.
One big plus for the company has been its publishing division which saw revenue grow by 12 percent to $40.6 million.
Martha Stewart Weddings saw their ad pages increase by 11 percent while Martha Stewart Living's ad pages grew by 10.8 percent during the first three months of the year.
In some other positive news the company has made a deal with Michael's Inc. to sell paper-based crafts through new Martha Stewart Crafts line. There is also a deal in place with Costco Wholesale Corp. (COST) to create a line of food products that will bear the brand of both companies.
This is still going to be a long process before the company starts to get back on track and sheds the negative image brought about from the negative publicity. Some of the luster has gone and it's hard to tell how long the lingering residue of the situation will hold back its success.
Comment Preview