California Apparel News

Gap Inc. recently reported that it laid off 216 people at its corporate office in San Francisco.

The job cuts will be effective on March 31, according to the State of California’s Employment Development Department’s website.

The job cuts were a result of changes in Gap’s operating model, which called for “streamlining,” according to Kari Shellhorn, a Gap Inc. representative. “We intend to make every effort to ensure that impacted employees are considered for any open positions within Gap Inc.,” she said in a statement.

The job cuts come at a time of change for the retail giant. It had suffered through a period of doldrums and had not reported gains in same-store sales for any of its fiscal quarters for more than one year. But early this month, Gap reported gains for its fourth quarter. It posted a 2 percent increase in same-store sales. Gap Inc.’s net sales increased 1 percent to $4.43 billion for its fourth quarter.

The increases were credited to good sales during the 2016 winter holiday season, said Art Peck, Gap’s chief executive officer. In May 2016, Gap Inc. announced a number of measures to cut costs and make its operations more efficient. During that time, it announced that it would close 75 stores.