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Ann Inc. is an American group of specialty
apparel retail
Retail is the sale of goods and services to consumers, in contrast to wholesaling, which is sale to business or institutional customers. A retailer purchases goods in large quantities from manufacturers, directly or through a wholesaler, and ...
chain store
A chain store or retail chain is a retail outlet in which several locations share a brand, central management and standardized business practices. They have come to dominate the retail and dining markets and many service categories, in many pa ...
s for women. The company headquartered in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
and currently operates as a subsidiary of
Ascena Retail Group. The stores offer classic-styled suits, separates, dresses, shoes and accessories. The brand is marketed under five divisions: Ann Taylor, Loft, Lou & Grey,
Ann Taylor Factory, and Loft Outlet.
History
Richard Liebeskind, the founder of Ann Taylor, opened his first Ann Taylor store in
New Haven, Connecticut
New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134 ...
, in 1954.
"Ann Taylor" was the name of a best-selling dress at Liebeskind's father's store. Both the best-selling dress and the name ''Ann Taylor'' were given by the father to his son, Richard Liebeskind, for good luck. Liebeskind decided to go with the name Ann Taylor because ''Ann'' was considered a very
New England
New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the Can ...
name, and ''Taylor'' evoked the image of tailored clothing. The name supposedly created the ideal identity of classic women's apparel.
In May 1991, the company completed an initial public offering resulting in aggregate net proceeds of approximately $166.5 million.
In March 2011, the company changed its name to Ann Inc., from Ann Taylor Stores Corporation.
As of October 27, 2012, the total store count was 981: of 278 Ann Taylor stores, 101 Ann Taylor Factory stores, 510 Loft stores, and 92 Loft Outlet stores, as well as online at AnnTaylor.com and Loft.com.
On May 18, 2015, Ascena Retail Group announced a $2.16 billion acquisition of Ann Inc. The buyout was completed on August 21, 2015. Ann Inc. will operate as an Ascena Retail Group subsidiary going forward.
In 2017, Ann Taylor launched a subscription rental service called Infinite Style. Loft followed up in 2019 with Infinite Loft subscription, a size inclusive subscription business.
Divisions
Ann Taylor is a small US chain of clothing stores for women. Clothing is targeted for fashion forward career women. Ann Taylor was founded in 1954.
Loft, originally Ann Taylor Loft, was established in 1998 as an extension of the original Ann Taylor brand, offers more relaxed fashions for work and home, in the "moderate" priced category. The selection provided at Loft initially was a more casual replica to that of the regular Ann Taylor, however has developed into its own brand, and now is known as a casual lifestyle brand. Loft also offers maternity clothing.
Lou & Grey sells relaxed, comfortable athleisure items and active-wear inspired fashion.
Ann Taylor Factory offers merchandise inspired by Ann Taylor stores, but manufactured for Ann Taylor Factory.
Loft Outlet offers a Loft-based
outlet environment, similar to the current Ann Taylor Factory stores, with unique Loft Outlet merchandise mirrored from popular and best-selling Loft products. There are currently 128 Loft Outlet stores throughout the United States.
Special collections
Ann Taylor Celebrations was launched in August 2005; it is a signature collection featuring dresses, wraps, sashes, shoes, and bags. Each piece in the collection is dyed to match. The collection can be worn for occasions from wedding parties to black tie and special events. In 2009, this line began being offered online only and was phased out in 2011.
Ann Taylor Collections was launched 2007 and consists of luxury apparel, accessories, and shoes made using Italian made fabrics and yarns. The craftsmanship is of an elevated value and the price point is higher than other pieces. It is no longer produced.
Ann Taylor Beauty consists of fragrance and bath and body products that were to be available in all Ann Taylor stores beginning late 2007 or early 2008. The Possibilities fragrance was released in November 2007. The body care line consisted of body mist, lotion, and body wash, and came in six scents. It is no longer produced.
Loft Maternity was released in Summer 2007 under the motto "Because you have a LOFT to expect." While at first the LOFT Maternity line included only mid-range sizes, it expanded to include all Loft sizes (00–18) in Fall 2007. As of Summer 2010, LOFT Maternity operates exclusively online, using the tag line, "Clothes so stylish and comfortable you'll wish you could wear them for more than nine months."
Flagship stores
Ann Taylor has two flagship locations:
* Store 0362: 645
Madison Avenue in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
* Store 0547: 600
North Michigan Avenue
Michigan Avenue is a north-south street in Chicago which runs at 100 east on the Chicago grid. The northern end of the street is at Lake Shore Drive on the shore of Lake Michigan in the Gold Coast Historic District. The street's southern ter ...
in
Chicago, Illinois
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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on the
Magnificent Mile
The Magnificent Mile, sometimes referred to as The Mag Mile, is an upscale section of Chicago's Michigan Avenue, running from the Chicago River to Oak Street in the Near North Side. The district is located within downtown, and one block ...
The company also has a Loft flagship store:
* Store 1614: 1459
Broadway
Broadway may refer to:
Theatre
* Broadway Theatre (disambiguation)
* Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
** Broadway (Manhattan), the street
**Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...
at
Times Square
Times Square is a major commercial intersection, tourist destination, entertainment hub, and neighborhood in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is formed by the junction of Broadway, Seventh Avenue, and 42nd Street. Together with adjacent ...
in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
Bankruptcy of Ascena
On July 23, 2020, Ascena, parent company of Ann Inc. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, citing the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent shutdowns as having "severely disrupted" its financial foundation. Stores with locations to be closed include Ann Taylor, LOFT, Lane Bryant and Lou & Grey stores, including all stores across brands in Canada, Puerto Rico and Mexico, as well as all Catherine Stores and a "significant number" of Justice stores.
Emergence from bankruptcy
On Dec. 23, 2020, Ascena announced that it had completed the sale of the Ann Taylor, LOFT, Lou & Grey, and Lane Bryant brands to Premium Apparel LLC, an affiliate of private equity firm Sycamore Partners. Premium Apparel stated that it had committed to retaining a substantial portion of the retail stores, associates, and corporate operations affiliated with these brands.
See also
*
Retail apocalypse
A retail apocalypse is the closing of numerous brick-and-mortar retail stores, especially those of large chains worldwide. It began around 2010, and was severely exacerbated by the mandatory closures during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In 2017, over ...
*
List of retailers affected by the retail apocalypse
The following retailers have all either closed or announced plans to close large numbers of retail locations, since 2010, during a time period labelled a "retail apocalypse" by media, accelerated by both the increase in online shopping and then by ...
References
External links
Official websiteAnn Taylor Loft official websiteAnn Taylor Celebrations official websiteAnn Taylor SEC FilingsWWD.com Profile: Ann Taylor Stores
{{Authority control
1954 establishments in Connecticut
Clothing retailers of the United States
Companies based in New York City
Companies formerly listed on the New York Stock Exchange
Retail companies established in 1954
2015 mergers and acquisitions
Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2020
Ascena Retail Group