On Monday, American fashion apparel company Gap announced it will be closing a quarter of its stores in North America. The other stores the company owns — including Banana Republic, Old Navy, Intermix and Atheleta — will continue to operate as is, while Gap factory outlets will be evaluated based on store performance, according to USA Today.
The company estimated that 175 stores will close in total, with 140 of the closures to happen this year. Only 500 Gaps and 300 outlets will remain in North America as a result.
Additional closures are expected for next year, including European stores.
Its headquarters in San Francisco, meanwhile, will cut 250 jobs. The company has yet to determine how many employees will be affected by the nationwide closures, according to Yahoo.
"Management is trying to control the exposure to the Gap brand until they can have some compelling product to really [rejuvenate] the top line and profitability," said Betty Chan, an analyst with Mizuho Securities USA, in the Yahoo story.
Gap has had its struggles in the last few years, with sales down 10 percent in this year's first quarter. Online sales also slowed down and the company had to shut down Piperlime, one of its e-commerce sites, according to CNN Money.
In January, the company fired Rebekka Bay, its creative director, and removed her former position in the process. Gap then hired Art Peck and Wendi Goldman the following month, to serve as chief executive and executive vice president for design and development, respectively.
"We're focused on offering consistent, on-brand product collections and enhancing the customer experience across all of our channels, including a smaller, more vibrant fleet of stores," declared Jeff Kirwan, Gap's president, via USA Today.
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