Gap Inc. plans temporary closure of stores across North America
Gap Inc., an American multinational clothing and accessories retailer, has recently announced that it will temporarily close selected North American stores amid escalating COVID-19 fears. The company will reportedly shut its Intermix, Janie and Jack, Gap, Banana Republic, Athleta, and Old Navy stores across North America for two weeks, which will be effective from March 19, 2020, based on the guidelines of health authorities and government officials.
The United States has observed a sharp increase in the number of COVID-19 patients, with nearly 6,469 infected patients and over 109 deaths.
With an aim to mitigate the risk of the unrolling coronavirus pandemic, the company has reportedly announced the reduction of store hours. Several other brick-and-mortar retailers are facing downfall of economy due to significant reduction in the number of shoppers. Various retailers such as American Eagle Outfitters, Ralph Lauren, L Brands, Macy’s, as well as Tiffany & Co have also joined the temporary store closure move.
As per the statement made by Gap Inc.’s incoming CEO, Sonia Syngal, the recent announcement was made to avoid possible exposure to coronavirus, as the pandemic hits globally, effecting a larger number of populations. Apart from this, its main concern is to support the livelihood and health of the employees and customers, as well as the entire communities, by focusing on taking up various preventive steps to limit the virus spread.
She further added that the company will provide subsidies to all store associates that will be impacted by the temporary halt of the business, by offering pay continuity as well as other benefits during the 2-week period. It will also keep the website operational for the online shoppers. Despite the ongoing highly contagious respiratory illness (COVI-19) spread, the company is looking forward to reopening the stores and returning to normal business soon.
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Saipriya Iyer currently works as a content developer for GroundAlerts. A computer engineer by profession, she ventured into the field of writing for the love of playing with words. Having had previous experience of 3 years under her belt, she has dabbled with website content writing, content auditin...