The uber-popular mall staple Victoria’s Secret is shutting down 250 stores in both the United States and Canada.
L Brands, the parent company of Victoria’s Secret and its spin-off PINK, plans to close a significant number of its North American stores in response to plummeting sales according to a report from CNBC.
With over one thousand locations in both the United States and Canada, this brand is best known for its lingerie, perfume, and intimate clothing lines and hosted an annual fashion showcase in November.
While the financial crisis caused by the COVID-19 outbreak can be seen as one of the reasons why the stores are closing, the decrease in mall popularity in favor of online retailers such as Rhianna’s Savage x Fenty contributes to the slow death of the shopping mall staple. These factors, in addition to the negative press surrounding the founder of L Brands’ involvement with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, contribute to the decline in both popularity of the brand and sales.
In addition to the shuttering of stores within Victoria’s Secret brand (such as one of its offshoots, PINK), other L Brands staple Bath and Body Works expects a decline in stores, although the number will be relatively smaller in comparison at half the projected amount.