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June 29, 2005
Sara Lee closes all 11 Inner Self stores
I bet you didn't know that Sara Lee owned a retail store concept designed to take on Victoria's Secret. It's true, and was called Inner Self, "a special intimate apparel/loungewear retail environment and experience that pampers, relaxes and soothes." Not that it matters, as Sara Lee has closed all 11 of these concept stores. They want to focus on the other brands they own (such as Playtex, Wonderbra, Hanes, and Champion -- nobody doesn't like Sara Lee!)
Frankly, they had to be a little crazy to think they could battle Victoria's Secret in this space. Sure, they tried to modify their target audience, going after a niche in the women 25-55 category, average dress size of 12. At the time, Sara Lee attempted to "provide an alternative to the often-unattainable, sexy ideal promoted by Victoria's Secret, and declining service at department stores."
Nevertheless, the chain is dead, and now there is a vacancy in the Fountain Court section of Old Orchard. We never saw people actually in that store, which only seemed to be around for a little longer than a year. In fact, when it first opened, it had to close for a few days due to a water leak. Telling signs of what was to come.
Posted by Tannerman at June 29, 2005 05:43 PM | Categories: Closed | Fountain Court | News | Old Orchard