Michael Kors to Shutter Stores As Sales Drop

A Michael Kors store at the Dolphin Mall in Miami. The fashion brand currently operates 827 locations worldwide.

LONDON—Michael Kors Holdings Ltd. said Wednesday it plans to close 100 to 125 of its 827 stores over the next two years as total revenue and same-store sales both posted double-digit annual declines for the most recent quarter. An even bigger year-over-year drop was reported for the fashion brand’s wholesale business, conducted mainly with department stores. Shares of the London-based company were down about 8% on the New York Stock Exchange as of mid-morning Wednesday.

Total revenue for the three-month period ending April 1 was down 11.2% to $1.06 billion, while same-store sales slipped 14.1% although on a net basis retail sales were up 0.5% from the year-ago period, due mainly to the opening of 159 new stores. Wholesale business was off 22.8% Y-O-Y. The company’s net loss was $26.8 million, or 17 cents per share, for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2017, compared with net income of $177 million, or 98 cents per share, a year earlier.