Jewelry

[hannahgirl]

Englewood, Colo.--Multi-media retailer QVC’s U.S. revenues grew a slim 3 percent to $1.2 billion in the first quarter, with jewelry sales slipping while sales of electronics, beauty and accessories climbed.

Overall, QVC’s first-quarter sales were up 4 percent to $1.8 billion, with sales particularly strong in Germany (up 13 percent) and the United Kingdom (up 5 percent). Also strong for the company were online sales, which rose 21 percent to $324 million and were cited as a leading factor in the quarter’s sales growth.

“In the U.S. our 3 percent revenue growth in the first quarter contributed to a 14 percent two-year growth rate, placing us among the faster-growing large retailers in the U.S.,” QVC President and Chief Executive Officer Mike George said. “Exceptional revenue growth from new customers and e-commerce, inclusive of mobile, in the U.S., Germany and the UK are the leading factors in this quarter’s performance.”

Sales were down 9 percent in Japan due to the March 11 tsunami and earthquake that devastated parts of the nation. QVC was off-air for 12 days following the disaster and lost an estimated $24 million in revenue. QVC said it continued to pay employees during the off-air period and donated nearly $2 million to local restoration efforts.

Going forward, QVC said it plans to continue to engage customers through multiple platforms, citing the success of its red carpet Oscar event held in March, which involved behind-the-scenes video blogs, contests on Facebook and QVC.com and live streaming tweets.

QVC’s parent company is Liberty Media Corp., which is comprised of the Liberty Interactive Group (which includes QVC), the Liberty Capital Group (which includes Atlanta National League Baseball Club Inc. and TruePosition Inc.) and the Liberty Starz Group (which includes the Starz and Encore television networks).

QVC ranked No. 6 on National Jeweler’s 2010 list of $100 Million Supersellers.