The Children’s Place (Secaucus, NJ) says it will close approximately 40 stores this year as the retailer’s Q1 sales plunged in the face of various challenges.
Sales totaled $362.4 million for the quarter, down $73.1 million or 16.8% compared to the prior year.
The retailer said the decline was “primarily due to lapping the COVID-19 stimulus relief program last year, the impact of unprecedented inflation on our customer, prolonged unseasonably cold temperatures through the end of the quarter in our major markets, and the impact of permanent store closures.”
The Children’s Place closed seven stores during the first quarter of 2022, ending the period with 665 locations – a 31.5% decrease compared to the end of Q1 2019 when the company operated 971 stores pre-pandemic.
Since 2013, the retailer has closed 534 stores and decreased total square footage by 2.1 million square feet or approximately 40%.
