Gap to close 75 Banana Republic, Old Navy stores

With sales down, Gap announced Thursday it will close 75 stores in its Old Navy and Banana Republic brands.

Most of the stores slated to be shuttered are overseas, including every Old Navy store in Japan. In a conference call with investors, Gap chief executive Art Peck said he's "obviously disappointed that we're going to be discontinuing operations," but it's a "sign of a good company that you acknowledge when a business isn't going to deliver."

Worldwide, there are more than 1,000 Old Navy stores and 679 Banana Republic outposts. The company expects to save roughly $275 million a year by closing stores and streamlining its operating model, The Washington Post reports, and is now focusing on expanding Old Navy in Mexico and China. For the first quarter, Gap says net sales were down 6 percent to $3.44 billion and profits were $127 million, falling 46.9 percent.

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