Ascena Retail Group Closing All 650 DressBarn Women's Clothing Stores

NEW YORK (CBSDFW.COM/AP) — The company has been around for nearly 60 years, but women's clothing retailer DressBarn has announced it's closing all 650 of its stores.

The company's chief financial officer, Steven Taylor, said DressBarn has not been operating at an "acceptable level of profitability in today's retail environment."

Its owner, Ascena Retail Group Inc., says it wants to focus on its more profitable brands. Ascena also owns Ann Taylor, Lane Bryant and other clothing stores.

The company did not say when Dressbarn will shut all its stores. Dressbarn employs about 6,800 people and has more than a dozen locations in North Texas alone.

After the news was announced Monday, shares of Ascena Retail Group Inc. rose 2.6% to $1.17 in extended trading. Shares of the New Jersey-based company are down more than 50% so far this year.

(© Copyright 2019 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)