Tweeter Group Adds Stores

Although the Tweeter Home Entertainment Group's rate of expansion has slowed, it shows no sign of stopping. The Canton, MA electronics retailer will open six new stores during the month of November.

Next month, Tweeter will open new stores in the Philadelphia and Washington, DC areas, two in Nashville, and one each in Spartanburg and Charleston, SC. The Charleston store will be in the suburban town of Mt. Pleasant. Tweeter is also relocating its store within the Dallas, TX Galleria, where it will emphasize custom installation and system design services.

Tweeter operates 168 stores across the country, variously flying the HiFi Buys, Hillcrest, Showcase, Sound Advice, or Tweeter banners. Sixteen new ones are scheduled to open in the current fiscal quarter, according to company merchandising vice president Bernie Sapienza, who said he is confident that the stores will be in full swing for the winter holiday season.

Tweeter Group posted a sales increase of 310% for its fiscal fourth quarter, ended September 30. The astounding increase was attributed to new store openings and the continuing wave of consumer interest in home theater equipment. Plasma and LCD flat-panel video displays accounted for approximately 10% of the company's sales volume during the quarter, which also saw a 28% rise in sales of high-definition and "HD-ready" rear-projection sets. Sales of digital satellite radio receivers for the automotive market jumped 77% in the same period, Tweeter reported.

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