Weider Nutrition chief executive Bruce Wood said yesterday that the company expected to launch new products later this fiscal year and also continue heavy marketing support for its Schiff Move Free supplement for joints, according to a report by Dow Jones.
Hurt by tough competition faced by Move Free and its sports supplements, as well as a sharp decline in sales in its primary European unit, Weider posted a 12 per cent drop in sales for its fiscal fourth quarter ended 31 May. Including one-time items, its net loss was $4.6 million (€4.7m) for the quarter, versus $844,000 a year ago.
For the twelve-month period ended 31 May 2002, Weider Nutrition's net sales were $311.1 million, compared to $342.3 million for same period in 2001. This represented a net loss of $7.5 million for fiscal 2002, compared to net income of $211,000 for the prior year.
Wood outlined several steps the company is taking to improve its fortunes in its three business units, including the launch of new products, said the report.
In the company's Active Nutrition Unit, which focuses on nutrition supplements in bodybuilding and other sports, the emphasis is on the "revitalisation of our Weider brand on a global basis," said Wood.
"The brand is undergoing a thorough renewal programme, including new products, new packaging and new advertising, all of which will break later this year, and which will be consistent around the world," he said.
In its Schiff Specialty Nutrition Unit, Weider's priority continues to be marketing support for Schiff Move Free, Wood said.
Weider is facing continuing high levels of branded and private label competition in that area. In the fiscal fourth quarter, Wood said, Weider had its "heaviest level of consumer marketing support in several quarters and we expect to put a comparable or higher investment behind Move Free and other Schiff-branded businesses in fiscal 2003".
"Realistically, though, we are expecting continuing pressure on our Move Free revenues from private label in the next several quarters," he added.
The company's Haleko unit, concentrated in Europe, is focused on cost-cutting as well as growing its nutrition brands, mainly in Germany, and improving the profitability of its private label business and Venice Beach sportswear, according to Wood.
Those moves come in the context of an expectation that the US and European mass market for supplements will remain flat, said Wood. "We continue to expect challenges on the revenue generation front."
Meanwhile, Weider will continue to work to reduce its cost structure and its domestic debt position, added Wood.
Chief financial officer Joseph Baty stressed that the company's aggregate debt dropped $33.5 million versus a year ago, to about $40 million as of 31 May.