Following a drop in sales due to an apparent misalignment of garment quality and high prices, J.Crew (New York) announced Friday that it will launch a new discount initiative called J.Crew Mercantile. The inaugural store will open later this month at The Shops at Park Lane in Dallas, Texas, reports Business Insider.
The brand’s new stores will offer discount merchandise that resembles “classic” J.Crew apparel, according to a statement released by the company. The retailer also noted that the new stores will offer clothing that had previously only been available through its outlet stores, J.Crew Factory. The company did not elaborate on how the new concept will differentiate from its current off-price stores.
The announcement of the new retail venture comes shortly after controversy surrounding J.Crew’s former vp of men’s merchandising, Alejandro Rhett, who was fired after making light of several of the company’s firings on social media – the brand recently cut 10 percent of its corporate staff, roughly 175 of its employees, according to Business Insider.