Abercrombie & Fitch closing more than 100 stores in strategy shift to internet, overseas

Abercrombie & Fitch plans to close even more of its flagship brand's U.S. stores in the next few months than it predicted earlier this year, as the youth-oriented retailer focuses instead on international growth and internet sales.

Online sales for Abercrombie and its stable of spinoff brands have jumped 40 percent this year and now make up 10 percent of the business, CEO Michael Jeffries said on a Nov. 16 conference call with Wall Street analysts. International sales, also rising rapidly, now make up about 18.5 percent of sales for the New York-based company.

The chain now plans to close about 67 U.S. Abercrombie & Fitch stores by the end of 2010, up from 60, and another 40 to 50 locations next year. The company operates about 1,100 stores in the U.S., of which 347 are the flagship Abercrombie & Fitch, 537 are Hollister Co. and 205 are abercrombie kids locations.

Abercrombie CFO Jonathan Ramsden said the costs of the closures will be minimal since in most cases the closures coincide with lease expirations. Stores with low volumes and those in lower-end malls were the first targeted for closure.

The company, which has not yet provided a list of stores slated for closure, plans "modest incremental markdowns" at the affected locations.