Movado posts 22.5 percent sales increase and net income of $32 million in 2011

Movado Group reported fiscal-year sales rose 22.5 percent year on year to $468.1 million for the period that ended on January 31. The company's cost of sales rose 6 percent to $211.8 million, which helped the retailer out of the red and to report net income of $32 million compared with a loss of $47.2 million one year ago. Movado's inventory as of January 31 fell 10 percent year on year to $163.7 million. According to Efraim Grinberg, the chairman of Movado, the strong results demonstrated the traction the brand has gained from strategic initiatives to reduce costs and improve margins. ''We have refined our product lines and introduced more frequent innovation, both of which have improved our competitive brand positioning while delivering more consistent sales and profit growth.