GAP, the trendiest clothes retailer of Y2K, will lock the door at 175 stores across North America including an unknown number of its 90 Canadian locations. In recent years, the appeal of the company’s goods faded somewhere along the way. although its Old Navy brand continues to do well. Gap Inc. also owns Banana Republic. The first GAP stores to go total 140 and will close this fiscal year. A further 35 will close later. Sources at the GAP specifically refused to say what is happening in Canada except that there will be closures. The San Francisco company also is closing an undisclosed number of stores in Europe. And it’s cutting jobs at its headquarters in an attempt to make the operation faster and more decisive. GAP has stores at Fairview Mall, First Canadian Place, on Queen Street W., Yonge Street and Yorkdale Shopping Centre. GAP also has seven Baby GAP stores similarly located in Toronto but the company has not mentioned this brand.
