In the midst of the global health pandemic, retailers of all sizes are having difficulty navigating the landscape. For those companies struggling before the pandemic, it’s especially tough.
In just a couple of months, we’ve seen retailers like Reitmans, J.Crew, Aldo Shoes, and more file for creditor’s protection and bankruptcy. In more recent news, the company that owns Victoria’s Secret has announced that the brand will close stores.
L Brands will be closing 250 Victoria’s Secret stores across North America.
Victoria’s Secret has been on the decline for years. With a shift in the market towards body positivity, controversial comments, and increasing competition in the lingerie space, the brand has struggled to appeal to its once-loyal customer base.
Since stores have been temporarily closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, L Brands noted that its first-quarter sales fell 37% to $1.65 billion from $2.63 billion a year ago. And while L Brands saw a bit of a boost in Victoria’s Secret’s e-commerce sales, it’s not enough to justify keeping stores open.
While the locations of the North American stores shuttering is still unknown for now, they will be happening over the next few months.
Closures won’t be the only thing that L Brands does to remedy the situation either. The company will also be taking measures globally, noting to Retail Dive that it will be “evaluating strategic alternatives to reduce or eliminate losses in the U.K. and China.”
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