First Quarter Financials and Store Activity:
• Gross profit increased 24.1 percent to $42.0 million for the first quarter. As a percent of sales, gross profit increased 96 basis points to 20.2 percent, due primarily to improvement in business mix relating to higher margin direct sales.
• Gander Mountain has completed its 2008 new store opening program by opening stores in Palm Beach Gardens and Ocala, Florida and Roanoke, Virginia. The company also opened stores in Eau Claire and Madison, Wisconsin replacing smaller older stores and incurred related store closing costs of $776,000 for the quarter.
• Selling, general and administrative expenses (SG&A) for the first quarter increased 14.1 percent to $59.0 million, driven by operational expenses related to Overton's. As a percent of sales, SG&A decreased 100 basis points to 28.4 percent due to expense control.