From OC Register
Downtown Disney store to close
November 5, 2008
Saks Inc. announced Wednesday that it will discontinue its Club Libby Lu business.
There are currently 78 Club Libby Lu stand-alone stores averaging 1,100 square feet at malls nationwide, including its only O.C. shop at Downtown Disney that opened in 2004, according to its Web site. The chain employs about 1,700 employees, who will be offered severance packages.
The upscale department store chain expects to complete the store closures of Club Libby Lu by May 2.
Steve Sadove, CEO of Saks Inc., said: “Discontinuing the operations of Club Libby Lu is the appropriate decision so that we can focus 100 percent of our time and resources on executing the strategies of our core Saks Fifth Avenue business.”
In 2003, Saks bought Club Libby Lu’s 11 stores primarily as a growth vehicle. For the fiscal year ended Feb. 2, Club Libby Lu generated revenues of about $60 million.
The 8-year-old Club Libby Lu chain caters to girls ages 4 to 12. At the experience-driven stores, girls can dress up as princesses or rock stars; mix spa products like “Soapy Sundae” body scrub, lip gloss and “Kool Karma” body spray; and get their ears pierced, according to the retailer’s Web site.
