Victoria’s Secret to permanently close 250 stores across the US and Canada

"High levels of uncertainty..."

Victoria's Secret will permanently close 250 stores across the US and Canada. The retailer, which includes the Victoria’s Secret Lingerie, Victoria’s Secret Beauty and PINK brands, has been struggling considerably since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic. All VS stores in the US have been shut since March 17 with all sales being carried out online. The company's owner, L Brands, reported sales for their first quarter this year had dropped by 37 percent to $1.65 billion compared to the same period in 2019. Victoria's Secret sales have dropped even further by 46 percent in the first quarter. "Given the high level of uncertainty in the current environment, the company is not providing second quarter or full-year 2020 earnings guidance," L Brands said in a press release this week. 235 of the Victoria’s Secret closures will take place in the US, as well as three PINK stores. The rest will take place in Canada. This comes after the VS fashion show was officially cancelled last year after a 24 year run. Established in 1995, the show eventually became a massive pop culture event featuring appearances from some of the world's top supermodels. 2018's show, however, received considerably low ratings and L Brands said they wanted to stop the show to "evolve" their marketing tragedy. "We're figuring out how to advance the positioning of the brand and best communicate that to customers," they said. CEO Les Wexner added last year that he had "never been more excited about the power of this brand." "In 2019 and beyond, we're focusing on developing exciting and dynamic content and a new kind of event," he said. "[It will be] delivered to our customers on platforms that she's glued to … and in ways that will push the boundaries of fashion in the global digital age."