Lingerie brand Victoria’s Secret to close over 50 outlets after bad holiday sales
'Given the decline in performance at Victoria’s Secret, we have substantially pulled back on capital investment in that business versus our history,’ the group said.
The parent company of Victoria’s Secret is pulling itself up by the bootstraps after it met with bad sales during the holiday season, through the closing down of more than 50 underperforming outlets in North America.
The lingerie chain’s owner L Brands on Wednesday said it would be closing down around 53 Victoria’s Secrets in North America in 2019, dropping its square footage in the country by roughly 3%. The closure in the amount of stores is historically more than three times compared to the 15 shops it shuts annually on average.
‘Given the decline in performance at Victoria’s Secret, we have substantially pulled back on capital investment in that business versus our history,’ the group said in the announcement.
The group operates more than 950 Victoria’s Secret stores in the US.
L Brands’ stock has fallen around 44% from a year ago, as it struggles to boost sales for its lingerie chain in the last few years.
Fast losing relevance to shoppers who seek inclusivity, self-expression
The group has been taking the heat over the years for not moving with the times to be more inclusive of women of different backgrounds, shapes, and sizes. Some customers have deviated from its bras and underwear in favour over “size-inclusive” brands.
Victoria’s Secret reported a 3% decline in comparable sales, led by a 7% fall from in-store sales, in the holiday quarter. The lingerie chain’s PINK brand posted a low-double-digit same store sales slide in the fourth quarter while its lingerie sales were flat.
To add it on, Victoria’s Secret has a new competitor, Target, who is on the move to take up a portion of the lingerie and sleepwear industry.
In an announcement earlier this week, Target said it will launch three new lines of lingerie and sleepwear to cater to its customer’s demands. The retailer said around 40% of its shoppers are looking for intimates and sleepwear in its stores and online.
Other competitors include pop star Rihanna’s lingerie firm Savage X Fenty, American Eagle Outfitters' Aerie, and fast-growing intimates’ seller ThirdLove.
This information has been prepared by IG, a trading name of IG Markets Limited. In addition to the disclaimer below, the material on this page does not contain a record of our trading prices, or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instrument. IG accepts no responsibility for any use that may be made of these comments and for any consequences that result. No representation or warranty is given as to the accuracy or completeness of this information. Consequently any person acting on it does so entirely at their own risk. Any research provided does not have regard to the specific investment objectives, financial situation and needs of any specific person who may receive it. It has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such is considered to be a marketing communication. Although we are not specifically constrained from dealing ahead of our recommendations we do not seek to take advantage of them before they are provided to our clients. See full non-independent research disclaimer and quarterly summary.
Act on share opportunities today
Go long or short on thousands of international stocks with spread bets and CFDs.
- Get full exposure for a comparatively small deposit
- Trade on spreads from just 0.1%
- Get greater order book visibility with direct market access
See opportunity on a stock?
Try a risk-free trade in your demo account, and see whether you’re on to something.
- Log in to your demo
- Take your position
- See whether your hunch pays off
See opportunity on a stock?
Don’t miss your chance – upgrade to a live account to take advantage.
- Trade a huge range of popular stocks
- Analyse and deal seamlessly on fast, intuitive charts
- See and react to breaking news in-platform
See opportunity on a stock?
Don’t miss your chance. Log in to take advantage while conditions prevail.
Live prices on most popular markets
- Equities
- Indices
- Forex
- Commodities
Prices above are subject to our website terms and agreements. Prices are indicative only. All share prices are delayed by at least 15 minutes.
Prices above are subject to our website terms and agreements. Prices are indicative only. All shares prices are delayed by at least 15 mins.
