Significant Accounting Policies

12 Months Ended

Jan. 29, 2011

Significant Accounting Policies [Abstract]

SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES

NOTE 2 - SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES

Significant accounting policies and practices used by the Company in the preparation of the accompanying consolidated financial statements are as follows:

FISCAL YEAR END

The Company’s fiscal year end ends on the Saturday closest to January 31 to enable the Company’s operations to be reported in a manner consistent with general retail reporting practices and the financial reporting needs of the Company. In the accompanying Notes, fiscal 2010 refers to the fiscal year beginning January 31, 2010 and ending January 29, 2011 and fiscal 2009 refers to the fiscal year beginning February 1, 2009 and ending January 30, 2010.

PRINCIPLES OF CONSOLIDATION

The consolidated financial statements include accounts of the Company and its wholly-owned subsidiaries. All intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation.

MANAGEMENT ESTIMATES

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”) requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities as of the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. The most significant estimates made by management in the accompanying consolidated financial statements relate to the valuation of accounts receivable and inventory balances, self-insured health care accruals, long-lived asset impairments and estimated useful lives of property and equipment and deferred tax assets. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS

All highly liquid investments with original maturities of three months or less are classified as cash and cash equivalents. The fair value of cash and cash equivalents approximates the amounts shown on the financial statements. Cash and cash equivalents consist of unrestricted cash in accounts maintained with major financial institutions.

Financial instruments that potentially subject the Company to concentrations of credit risk consist primarily of cash and cash equivalents. The Company reduces credit risk by placing its cash and cash equivalents with major financial institutions with high credit ratings. At times, such amounts may exceed federally insured limits.

ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLE

The Company’s accounts receivable consist primarily of trade receivables due from wholesale sales. Also included are credit card receivables and receivables due from consignment sales relating to the Company’s retail business segment. Generally, there are three to four days of retail sales transactions outstanding with third-party credit card vendors and approximately one to two weeks of consignment retail sales at any point in time. An allowance for doubtful accounts is determined through analysis of the aging of accounts receivable at the date of the financial statements, assessments of collectability based on an evaluation of historical and anticipated trends, the financial condition of the Company’s customers and an evaluation of the impact of economic conditions.

INVENTORIES

Inventories, principally consisting of finished goods, are stated at the lower of cost or market with cost being determined on a weighted average basis. The cost of inventory includes product cost and freight charges. Write offs of potentially slow moving or damaged inventory are recorded based on management’s analysis of inventory levels, future sales forecasts and through specific identification of obsolete or damaged merchandise.

PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT

Property and equipment is carried at cost, less accumulated depreciation and amortization. Depreciation for property and equipment, which includes assets under capital leases, is calculated using the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the related assets. Leasehold improvements are amortized over the shorter of the term of the lease including one stated renewal period that is reasonably assured, or the estimated useful lives of the improvements, generally ten years, with the exception of the improvements on the corporate office and warehouse in Bellport, New York which has a lease term of twenty years. Costs of major additions and improvements are capitalized and expenditures for maintenance and repairs which do not extend the useful life of the asset are expensed when incurred. Gains or losses arising from sales or retirements are reflected in operations. See Note 4.

INTANGIBLE ASSETS

Intangible assets with indefinite lives are not amortized, but rather tested for impairment at least annually. The fair values are estimated and compared to their carrying values.

Trademarks, including tradenames and owned licenses having finite lives are recorded at cost and are amortized over their respective lives to their estimated residual values and are also reviewed for impairment when changes in circumstances indicate the assets’ value may be impaired. Impairment testing is based on a review of forecasted operating cash flows and the profitability of the related brand.

GIFT CARDS

Upon the purchase of a gift card by a retail customer, a liability is established for the cash value of the gift card. The liability is included in accrued expenses and other liabilities. The liability is relieved and revenue is recognized at the time of the redemption of the gift card. Over time, some portion of gift cards issued is not redeemed. If this amount is determined to be material to the Company’s consolidated financial statements, it will be recorded as a reduction of selling, general and administrative expenses, when it can be determined that the likelihood of the gift card being redeemed is remote and there is no legal obligation to remit the unredeemed gift cards to relevant jurisdictions (often referred to as gift card breakage). No gift card breakage has been recorded in the consolidated statements of operations for any year presented in these financial statements. Gift cards issued by the Company do not have expiration dates.

ACCRUED EXPENSES

Accrued expenses for self insured employee medical benefits, contracted advertising, sales allowances, professional fees and other outstanding obligations are assessed based on claims experience and statistical trends, open contractual obligations and estimates based on projections and current requirements. If these trends change significantly, then actual results would likely be impacted.

REVENUE RECOGNITION

Revenue from wholesale transactions is recognized when title passes, which occurs either upon shipment of products or delivery to the customer. Revenue from retail sales is recorded, net of discounts, at the point of sale for Perfumania stores, and for consignment sales, when sale to the ultimate customer occurs. Revenue from Internet sales is recognized at the time products are delivered to customers. Shipping and handling revenue from our Internet sales is included as a component of net sales. Revenues are presented net of any taxes collected from customers and remitted to government agencies. Revenue from gift cards is recognized at the time of redemption. Returns of store and Internet sales are allowed within 30 days of purchase.

SALES AND ALLOWANCES

Allowances for sales returns are estimated and recorded as a reduction of sales based on our historical return patterns. Allowances provided for advertising, marketing and tradeshows are recorded as selling expenses since they are costs for services received from the customer which are separable from the customer’s purchase of the Company’s products. Accruals and allowances are estimated based on available information including third party and historical data.

COST OF GOODS SOLD

Cost of goods sold include the cost of merchandise sold, inventory valuation writedowns, inventory shortages, damages and freight charges.

SELLING, GENERAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES

Selling, general and administrative expenses include payroll and related benefits for our store operations, field management, distribution center, purchasing and other corporate office and administrative personnel; rent, common area maintenance, real estate taxes and utilities for our stores, distribution centers and corporate office; advertising, consignment fees, sales promotion, insurance, supplies, professional fees and other administrative expenses.

INCOME TAXES

Deferred tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the differences between the financial reporting carrying values and the tax bases of assets and liabilities and are measured using the enacted tax rates and laws that will be in effect when the differences are expected to reverse. A valuation allowance is recognized to reduce net deferred tax assets to amounts that management believes are more likely than not expected to be realized. Significant judgment is required in determining the provision for income taxes. Changes in estimates may create volatility in the Company’s effective tax rate in future periods for various reasons including, but not limited to: changes in tax laws/rates, forecasted amounts and mix of pre-tax income/loss, settlements with various tax authorities, the expiration of the statute of limitations on some tax positions and obtaining new information about particular tax positions that may cause management to change its estimates. In the ordinary course of business, the ultimate tax outcome is uncertain for many transactions. It is the Company’s policy to recognize, at the largest amount that is more-likely-than-not to be sustained upon audit by the relevant taxing authority, the impact of an uncertain income tax position on its income tax return. The tax provisions are analyzed at least quarterly and adjustments are made as events occur that warrant adjustments to those provisions. The Company records interest expense and penalties payable to relevant tax authorities as income tax expense.

Accounting standards prescribe a comprehensive model for the financial statement recognition, measurement, presentation and disclosure of uncertain tax positions taken or expected to be taken in an income tax return. The Company may recognize the tax benefit from an uncertain tax position only if it is more likely than not that the tax position will be sustained on examination by the taxing authorities, based on the technical merits of the position. The tax benefits recognized in the financial statements from such a position should be measured based on the largest benefit that has a greater than fifty percent likelihood of being realized upon ultimate settlement. The accounting standards also provide guidance on derecognition, classification, interest and penalties on income taxes, accounting in interim periods and requires increased disclosures. See further discussion at Note 7.

BASIC AND DILUTED NET LOSS PER COMMON SHARE

Basic net loss per common share is computed by dividing net loss by the weighted average number of common shares outstanding during the period. Diluted net loss per common share includes, in periods in which they are dilutive, the dilutive effect of those common stock equivalents where the average market price of the common shares exceeds the exercise prices for the respective years.

Basic and diluted net loss per common share are computed as follows:

	Fiscal Year Ended January 29, 2011			Fiscal Year Ended January 30, 2010
	($ in thousands, except share amounts)
Net loss - basic and diluted	$	(3,724	)	$	(15,828	)
Denominator:
Weighted average number of shares for basic and dilutive net loss per share		8,966,612			8,966,417
Basic and diluted net loss per common share	$	(0.42	)	$	(1.77	)

In fiscal 2010 and 2009, 2,419,912 and 2,406,100 potential shares of common stock, respectively, relating to stock option awards, warrants and a convertible note were excluded from the diluted loss per share calculation, because the effect of including these potential shares was antidilutive due to net losses reported in each year.

ACCOUNTING FOR THE IMPAIRMENT OF LONG-LIVED ASSETS

The carrying value of long-lived assets is evaluated whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying values of such assets may be impaired. An evaluation of recoverability is performed by comparing the carrying values of the assets to projected undiscounted future cash flows in addition to other quantitative and qualitative analyses, including management’s strategic plans and market trends. Upon indication that the carrying values of such assets may not be recoverable, the Company recognizes an impairment loss. The impairment loss is determined based on the difference between the net book value and the fair value of the assets. The estimated fair value is based on anticipated discounted future cash flows. Any impairment is charged to operations in the period in which it is identified. Property and equipment assets are grouped at the lowest level for which there are identifiable cash flows when assessing impairment. Cash flows for retail assets are identified at the individual store level. See Note 4 for a discussion of impairment charges for long-lived assets recorded in fiscal 2010 and 2009.

SHARE BASED COMPENSATION

Share based compensation expense is recognized on a straight-line basis over the requisite service period. We estimate the fair value of stock options granted using the Black-Scholes option valuation model. See further discussion at Note 9.

PRE-OPENING EXPENSES

Pre-opening expenses related to new stores are expensed as incurred.

SHIPPING AND HANDLING FEES AND COSTS

The cost related to shipping and handling for wholesale sales is classified as freight out, which is included in selling, general and administrative expenses. Income generated by retail sales from shipping and handling fees is classified as revenues and the costs related to shipping and handling are classified as cost of goods sold.

ADVERTISING COSTS

Advertising expense for fiscal 2010 and fiscal 2009 was approximately $2.9 million and $3.8 million, respectively, and is charged to expense when incurred. We periodically receive cooperative advertising allowances and credits from certain vendors. The aggregate amount of such allowances and credits is immaterial to our results of operations.

RENT EXPENSE

The Company leases retail stores as well as a corporate office and distribution center under operating leases. Minimum rental expenses are recognized over the term of the lease on a straight-line basis. For purposes of recognizing minimum rental expenses, the Company uses the date when possession of the leased space is taken from the landlord, which includes a construction period of approximately two months prior to store opening. For tenant improvement allowances and rent holidays, the Company records a deferred rent liability in accrued expenses on the consolidated balance sheets and amortizes the deferred rent over the terms of the leases as reductions to rent expense on the consolidated statements of operations. For scheduled rent escalation clauses during the lease terms or for rental payments commencing at a date other than the date of initial occupancy, the Company records minimum rental expenses on a straight-line basis over the terms of the leases on the consolidated statements of operations.

Certain leases provide for contingent rents, which are primarily determined as a percentage of gross sales in excess of specified levels and are not measurable at inception. The Company records a contingent rent liability in accrued expenses on the consolidated balance sheets and the corresponding rent expense when specified levels have been achieved or when management determines that achieving the specified levels during the fiscal year is probable.

FAIR VALUE OF FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS

The fair values of the Company’s assets and liabilities that qualify as financial instruments, including cash and cash equivalents, accounts receivable, accounts payable, short-term debt, and accrued expenses, are carried at cost, which approximates fair value due to the short-term maturity of these instruments. The reported amounts of long-term obligations approximate fair value, given management’s evaluation of the instruments’ current rates compared to market rates of interest and other factors.

CONCENTRATIONS OF CREDIT RISK

The Company is potentially subject to a concentration of credit risk with respect to its trade receivables, the majority of which are due from retailers and wholesale distributors. Credit risks also relate to the seasonal nature of the business. The Company’s sales are concentrated in November and December for the holiday season. The Company performs ongoing credit evaluations of its customers and generally does not require collateral. The Company maintains allowances to cover potential or anticipated losses for uncollectible accounts. The Company maintains credit insurance on certain receivables, which minimizes the financial impact of uncollectible accounts.

RECENT ACCOUNTING PRONOUNCEMENTS

In January 2010, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued an accounting standards update to amend and clarify existing guidance related to fair value measurements and disclosures. This guidance adds new requirements for disclosures related to transfers into and out of Level 1 and Level 2 and requires separate disclosure of purchases, sales, issuances, and settlements related to Level 3 measurements. It also clarifies guidance around disaggregation and disclosures of inputs and valuation techniques used to measure fair value. We adopted the provisions of this accounting standards update effective January 31, 2010 except for the requirements related to Level 3 disclosures, which are effective for annual and interim periods beginning after December 15, 2010. The adoption of this guidance did not have a material effect on the Company’s consolidated results of operations, financial position or cash flows, and we do not expect the adoption of the remaining disclosure requirements to impact our financial statements or results.