Revenues for the nine months ended September 30, 2002 increased by $29,348,000 to $52,148,000 from revenues of $22,800,000 for the nine months ended September 30, 2001. This increase over the prior year period is due to the acquisition of Regal in December 2001, partially offset by a $1.0 million decline in Discovery Toys revenue for the nine months ended September 30, 2002. Discovery Toys’ sales of $21.8 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2002 declined $1.0 million compared to $22.8 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2001 mostly due to a 10.4% decline in the number of active selling Educational Consultants, which resulted in product sales falling $1,915,000 during the period. This decline was partially offset by a reduction in the commissions paid (which are recorded as offsets to revenue in our Statements of Operations) to Educational Consultants from $4,253,000 for the nine months ended September 30, 2001 to $3,817,000 for the nine months ended September 30, 2002. Regal’s revenues of $30.4 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2002 consisted of $28.4 million in card, gift and other product sales, $1.1 million in shipping revenue, and $0.9 million in catalog and other sales. Regal’s revenue for the nine months ended September 30, 2002 of $30.4 million compared, on apro forma basis, to $31.1 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2001, with $0.6 million of the decline related to unfavorable exchange rate fluctuation and with $1.1 million of the decline due to higher representative and promotional discounts, partially offset by increased product and catalog sales of $1.0 million compared to the nine months ended September 30, 2001. Cost of Sales and Gross Margin – Total cost of sales increased by $5,559,000 to $10,499,000 in the three months ended September 30, 2002 from $4,940,000 in the three months ended September 30, 2001. This increase over the prior year is primarily due to the acquisition of Regal, as well as an increase of $664,000 in Discovery Toys’ cost of goods sold related to higher sales volumes at Discovery Toys for the same period. Gross Margin percentages in the three months ended September 30, 2002 improved by 4.5 percentage points, to 43.7% from 39.2%, compared to the three months ended September 30, 2001 because of the favorable gross profit mix from the inclusion of the Regal business. Discovery Toys’ margin declined to 32.5% in the three months ended September 30, 2002, from 39.2% in the three months ended September 30, 2001 mostly due to reduced margins attributable to price discounts on selected products and an increase in new Educational Consultant kit sales. Total cost of sales increased by $14,833,000 to $28,589,000 in the nine months ended September 30, 2002 from $13,756,000 in the nine months ended September 30, 2001. This increase over the prior year is also primarily due to the acquisition of Regal, as well as an increase of $198,000 in Discovery Toys’ cost of goods sold related to higher sales volumes at Discovery Toys for the period. Gross Margin percentages in the nine months ended September 30, 2002 improved by 5.5 percentage points, to 45.2% from 39.7%, compared to the nine months ended September 30, 2001 because of the favorable gross profit mix from the inclusion of the Regal business. Discovery Toys’ margin declined to 35.9% in the nine months ended September 30, 2002 from 39.7% in the nine months ended September 30, 2001, mostly due to reduced margins attributable to price discounts on selected products and a shift in mix to lower margin products including new Educational Consultant kits. Sales and Marketing Expenses – Sales and marketing costs for the three months ended September 30, 2002 increased by $3,991,000 to $5,941,000, from $1,950,000 for the three months ended September 30, 2001. The increase was primarily due to additional payroll and benefits costs of $1,489,000 and advertising costs of $1,481,000 related to Regal. Other increases included sales center operating costs related to marketing and selling the Regal product lines acquired in December 2001. For the nine months ended September 30, 2002, sales and marketing expenses of $16,030,000 were $11,431,000 higher than the $4,599,000 reported for the nine months ended September 30, 2001, reflecting additional payroll costs of $4,200,000 and advertising costs of $4,233,000 related to the Regal business. Sales center operating costs for Regal also increased sales and marketing expense by $1,168,000. General and Administrative Expenses – General and administrative expenses (“G&A”) increased by $2,610,000 to $5,089,000 in the three months September 30, 2002 from $2,479,000 in the three months ended September 30, 2001. Additional expenses were largely related to normal G&A expenses for the Regal business of $2,544,000 that consist primarily of payroll and benefits of $1,277,000 and depreciation and amortization expenses of $583,000. 15 |