Continued growth in its North American business pushed third-quarter sales up 16% for Nova LifeStyle , the parent company of Diamond Sofa and several other modern furniture brands.
Net sales were $25.9 million in the quarter and net income was $3.1 million or 15 cents per share, more than double the $1.2 million or 6 cents per share earned in the 2013 third quarter.
North American sales were up 45% from a year earlier. Sales to China were flat at $4.4 million, but the company cited two deals in China that will increase its business there — agreements to provide office furniture to Ping An Insurance Group and to manufacture Ikea products for sale in China and elsewhere in Asia.
“We were successful on our commitment to grow sales in China with a signed agreement with Ping An, number 62 on Forbes Global 2000 list of the largest companies in the world,” said Tawny Lam, president of Nova LifeStyle. “In September, we shipped the first of three monthly shipments to Ikea’s distribution center in Shanghai, and we expanded our franchise network by partnering with Ablejoy, one of China’s largest franchise builders.
“We made good on our initiative to grow ecommerce sales and are thrilled with the 200% increase that we experienced for the whole of the third quarter via the online sales venues of Alibaba’s B2C site, TMall and JD.com.”
For the nine months ended Sept. 30, Nova’s sales were up 23% from a year earlier to $69.7 million, with a 34% increase in sales volume and a 9% decrease in average selling price, the company said. Net income was $6.8 million or 33 cents per share, and included a $2.8 million pretax gain due to the change in fair value of a warrant liability. That was up from $3.9 million or 19 cents per share a year earlier.
In addition to Diamond Sofa, Nova’s brands include Colorful World, Giorgio Mobili, Nova QwiK and Bright Swallow International. The company makes products including upholstery, case goods, cabinets, office furniture and accessories in the United States, Europe and Asia.