The Children's Place, the beloved kids' clothing store that was founded in 1969, plans to close hundreds of store locations in the coming months, according to new reports. On a June 11 earnings call, CEO Jane Elfers said the retailer would be shuttering "an additional 300 stores, dramatically reducing our reliance on our brick and mortar channel" in a multi-phase plan accelerated by the recent global health crisis.
The retailer plans to shift its focus to online sales, as it saw a 300% spike in web purchases since the coronavirus hit.
Elfers also cited the "continued level of uncertainty in the current business environment," due to stay-at-home orders, as one reason store closures are accelerating.
"Our forecast now targets closing approximately 200 store locations in fiscal 2020, and approximately 100 store locations in fiscal 2021," the CEO explained.
By the end of 2021, the retailer plans to have closed a total of 625 store locations.
Many fans of the store were upset by the news on social media.
"I hope they don't close completely!" one person commented on a Facebook news post. "I order so much online and get such good deals!"
"So sad," added another.
The Children's Place has weathered some rocky years in the past, and has even made headlines for store closures before.
According to a USA Today article from 2019, the company has gradually closed more than 200 stores since 2013.
At the time, Elfers said the retailer had been "strategically ahead of the curve" and added that the multiyear strategy "strongly positions us to capture the benefits of meaningful market share redistribution."
"We've dramatically slowed down openings, accelerated store closures in low quality centers, and significantly shorten lease term to allow for maximum flexibility within the portfolio," Elfers added.
Earlier this year, the company helped revive Gymboree, which had previously filed for bankruptcy.
The retailer famously filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and shuttered more than 800 stores of its own in January 2019, in what became a record-breaking year for retail store closings across the US. However, by early 2020, the rights to the Gymboree brand had been bought by The Children's Place, and it was launching eight new collections in TCP locations nationwide.
"The Gymboree team has worked tirelessly to bring this iconic brand back to its passionate and loyal customers," Elfers said at the time.
"Gymboree was successfully built on capturing the essence of childhood in its product design," Senior Vice President of Design and Brand Creative Jennifer Groves added in a press release. "Childhood passes by in a moment, and because of this, we want to capture family memories that will last forever as kids run, dream, explore and imagine … all in Gymboree."
Shoppers near closing TCP stores can at least look forward to some big going out of business sales.
Liquidation sales will reportedly begin in 50 stores within the next six weeks, according to Chief Financial Officer Mike Scarpa, who also took part in the call.
"We expect that a good portion of them will open and liquidate and then will close, depending on the inventories that are left in the store," Scarpa said.
As of now, it's not clear which stores will be affected, and many of them are still not allowed to reopen per their region's COVID-19 guidelines. But if you're looking to score a good deal ASAP, the company is offering up to 80% everything online right now.
