Victoria’s Secret, Bath & Body Works stores in U.S., Canada to be closed as sales decline

According to L Brands, about 250 Victoria’s Secret stores will be closed, along with 50 shops of Bath & Body Works, which is also under the retail company. (File photo: Alpha/Flickr, CC BY-NC 2.0)

The parent company of Victoria’s Secret, L Brands, announced that it is closing hundreds of its stores both in the United States (U.S.) and Canada, as the world continues to grapple with the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

According to L Brands, about 250 Victoria’s Secret stores will be closed, along with 50 shops of Bath & Body Works, which is also under the retail company.

Victoria’s Secret CEO Stuart Burgdoerfer told analysts through a call that they expect “a meaningful number of additional store closures” beyond the 250 shops they will be shutting down this year.

“Meaning there will be more in 2021 and probably a bit more in 2022,” he said.

On Wednesday, May 20, L Brands reported that its net sales plummeted to $1.65 billion in the first quarter ended on May 2, compared to the $2.63 billion recorded during the quarter ended on May 4 last year. Since March 17, L Brands said that almost all of its stores were closed due to the pandemic.

“The company reported a loss per share of $1.07 for the first quarter ended May 2, 2020, compared to earnings per share of $0.14 for the quarter ended May 4, 2019,” the company said in a press release.

“First quarter operating loss was $317.7 million compared to operating income of $153.3 million last year, and net loss was $296.9 million compared to net income of $40.3 million last year, it added.

It noted that Bath & Body Works’ first quarter sales in the U.S. and Canada declined to $712.7 million, compared to $870.7 million in 2019. Victoria’s Secret sales, meanwhile, went down to $821.5 million, compared to the $1.51 billion it obtained last year.

L Brands said that it will continue its plan to make Bath & Body Works a “pure-play public company,” while it prepares the Victoria’s Secret Lingerie, Victoria’s Secret Beauty and Pink businesses to be a “standalone company.”