The Children’s Place looking to close 300 additional stores over next 20 months

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The Children’s Place, the national child and baby clothes retailer, announced in a June 11 earnings call that it is targeting to close “an additional 300 stores, dramatically reducing our reliance on our brick and mortar channel.”

“Our forecast now targets closing approximately 200 store locations in fiscal 2020, and approximately 100 store locations in fiscal 2021, resulting in approximately 625 store locations at year-end 2021,” CEO Jane Elfers said on a June 11 earnings call, according to a transcript from the Motley Fool.

The CEO also noted on the call that the company would not be providing a financial outlook for the 2020 fiscal year “due to the continued level of uncertainty in the current business environment.”

In the earnings call, Elfers also highlighted how the pandemic “will continue to accelerate the shift to digital, putting enormous pressure on the already-stressed brick and mortar channel, resulting in accelerated store closures.”

Founded in 1969, The Children’s Place operates hundreds of stores in mall locations and outlet centers across the U.S. as well as in Canada. The announcement of intended store closures follows similar moves made by national brands and retailers in the dismal business environment spurred by the pandemic.

This week, 24 Hour Fitness, a national gym chain, said that it would be filing for bankruptcy and closing more than 130 gyms.

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In May, JCPenney filed for bankruptcy while announcing store closures.

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