- On Thursday, Indigo Books and Music (TSX:IDG) CEO Heather Reisman unveiled a new store in The Well, a chic downtown Toronto development, as she painted her vision for the company after her unplanned return
- Reisman intends to raise book sales to 65-70 per cent of total sales, compared with 51.9 per cent in Indigo’s most recent fiscal year
- Indigo Books and Music is Canada’s leading book and lifestyle retailer operating 171 stores across all 10 provinces and one territory
- Indigo stock (TSX:IDG) has rallied by approximately 75 per cent since Sept. 7
On Thursday, Indigo Books and Music (TSX:IDG) CEO Heather Reisman unveiled a new store in The Well, a chic downtown Toronto development, as she painted her vision for the company after her unplanned return.
Former CEO Peter Ruis, left Indigo in September after less than one year in the post, just a few months after Reisman announced her retirement and the company lost nearly half of its board, partially because of allegations of mistreatment.
During a media event at the new store, Reisman was adamant about the need for Indigo to return to its roots by increasing book sales, with a target of 65-70 per cent of total sales, compared with 51.9 per cent in its most recent fiscal year. This approach is in stark contrast to the company’s focus on diversifying into general merchandise, which has been expanded over the years to include such disparate items as cameras, furniture, jewelry and sex toys.
Reisman also emphasized more intentional curation of the general merchandise that will remain, moving away from its “random” feel in recent years, as well as greater flexibility for stores to order products catered to their local communities, as opposed to having to make do with top-down distribution decisions.
“Each store should feel like an independent in its market,” Reisman stated in a separate online session on Thursday with representatives from Canadian book publishing. “That’s the organizing principle that we used to have some time ago. We want to re-ignite that notion.”
Indigo has posted negative net income in four of the past five years, including a loss of C$185 million in fiscal 2020, and a loss of almost C$50 million in fiscal 2023, which saw it navigate a company-wide cyberattack in February. That said, Indigo stock (TSX:IDG) has rallied since Ruis’ departure, adding approximately 75 per cent since Sept. 7.
The stock is up by 1.86 per cent, trading at C$2.19 per share as of 10:04 am ET.
Indigo Books and Music is Canada’s leading book and lifestyle retailer with offerings that span books, gifts, home, wellness, fashion, paper, baby and kids products. It operates 171 stores across all 10 provinces and one territory in Canada, as well as one store in the United States in Short Hills, New Jersey.
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