Abercrombie & Fitch joins global store shut-down movement

Abercrombie & Fitch has become the latest global fashion retailer to announce a temporary store-shutdown as it joins the effort to curb the spread of the Coronavirus, COVID-19.

The US giant said it would be shuttering stores in the USA from today (15 March) and in EMEA from 16 March. The stores are due to stay closed until 28 March.

Its APAC stores will remain open during this period and its e-commerce business will continue to operate. The move follows similar announcements from Urban Outfitters and Nike who also plan to close stores for the same period, as has tech giant Apple.

The company also announced that it was withdrawing the first-quarter and full-year 2020 outlook issued on 4 March 2020, although it still expects material adverse impacts. It is not providing further updates at this stage.

CEO Fran Horowitz said: "The decision to close all our stores outside of the APAC region has been done with a focus on the wellbeing of our associates, our customers, our partners, and our communities, and it is in keeping with our commitment to being a responsible corporate citizen."

Abercrombie & Fitch operates around 330 global stores. In the UK it operates two Abercrombie stores in London and one in Manchester, while its Hollister brand has around 30 stores.