Gap Needs to Close Another 175 Stores

With no relief in sight from its chronic sales declines, Gap Inc will need to close a lot more namesake stores on top of the dramatic shrinking of its fleet in recent years, according to a Wall Street analyst. Earlier this month, the company reported comparable sales fell 3 percent in March, the 23rd month without growth at the Gap flagship brand, which generates 36 percent of company revenues. And that was despite having 128 fewer North American speciality stores than a year ago, typically underperforming locations that dragged down growth metrics.