Sears closes New York design office

By

Obi Anyanwu

Published
Jul 15, 2016

Sears Holdings Corp. will close its apparel design office in New York City, according to the American media. The press first reported in April that the company will shutter its Manhattan design office, and the official closing date is slated for Friday.

The company operated the 45,000-square-foot design office for a decade and it was the birthplace of the Covington and Apostrophe brands. According to the media, the closure will effect around 140 people. Though the New York design studio is closing, Sears’ design offices will operate out of San Francisco.
 
The recent closure comes three months after the company announced the closing of 78 stores, which accounts for 5% of its total number of stores. The store closings include 10 Sears department stores and 68 Kmart discount stores and they are slated to occur in late July.

Sears’ revenue fell 8.4% to $5.4 billion in its most recent financial report, which contributes to its $8 billion loss over the past 5 years. The closing of the New York City design office located at 75 Varick Street is another effect of the decline in business.