Women’s fashion retailer BCBG Max Azria plans to close some of its stores to focus more on eCommerce, licensing and wholesaling.
“BCBG has been negatively impacted by the growth in online sales and shifts in customer shopping patterns, and as a result has too large a physical retail footprint,” says PR company Sitrick & Co spokesman Seth Lubove.
“To remain viable, the company must realign its business to effectively compete in today’s shopping environment.”
BCBG hired AlixPartners consultancy, replacing Berkeley Research Group, to restructure its debt, reports Bloomberg.
Many US retailers, especially department stores, struggled through the latest holiday season, including H&M and Target. Payless has announced it is restructuring to deal with its US$665 million debt, and department store Macy’s has cut more than 10,000 jobs as it closes branches and downsizes.
BCBG has 570 global stores, with 175 in the US. It opened new stores in Munich and Paris last year, and plans to open a store in Quebec this year.