"While a difficult to decision to make, it is necessary for the Wet Seal, Inc. to reduce its cost structure and focus on those stores that can deliver the best performance as we implement our new merchandise strategy," says Joe Deckop, Wet Seal's interim chief executive officer.
The announcement comes after months of speculation that the retailer would close stores and/or file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. During its Q3, the company posted a loss of $24.6 million and same-store sales dropped by 12.6% from the same period a year ago.
Earlier this month the company chose Joel Waller as its new CEO. Waller is the chairman of Wilsons Leather, a company that closed about 100 stores this year as part of its own cost-cutting plan. Waller is replacing Deckop, who will remain with the company.
Wet Seal operates 463 mainly mall-based Wet Seal stores and 96 Arden B units. All of the stores it is closing are Wet Seals. At the beginning of the year it shuttered its entire 31-store Zutopia chain.
Want to continue reading?
Become a Free ALM Digital Reader.
Once you are an ALM Digital Member, you’ll receive:
- Breaking commercial real estate news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
- Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
- Critical coverage of the property casualty insurance and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, PropertyCasualty360 and ThinkAdvisor
Already have an account? Sign In Now
*May exclude premium content© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
