CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Well known department store is closing dozens of stores and laying off thousands of workers. And I know it is affecting Atlanta as well. Carrie Lee live from the Nasdaq site in New York. Good morning -- Carrie.</s>CARRIE LEE, CNN FINANCIAL NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. A lot of locations being closed. Lord & Taylor, owned by May Department Stores, is closing 32 stores and laying off 3,700 employees. Now that is about one-third of the company's U.S. stores in total. May says it wants to restore Lord & Taylor's image as a classic upscale fashion retailer. And in recent years, the company has really been known as a mall store with constant sales competing with JCPenney and Kohl's. These stores that are being closed, however, represent about 38 percent of the company's locations, Lord & Taylor locations, but just 19 percent of sales. So bottom line here, underperforming stores. And really this is just the latest bit of layoff news we have had this week. Remember Verizon Communications earlier in the week said they were going to cut up to 5,000 workers. Similar names, VF Corporation, Fruit of the Loom, Reader's Digest, so layoffs are continuing despite some thinking that the economic rebound is under way. Now we'll get a report on jobless claims, unemployment faces -- new faces in the unemployment line for last week. And, Carol, tomorrow the big unemployment report for the month of July. So this is certainly something front and center, not only on worker's minds, but on economist's minds as well.</s>COSTELLO: All right. Carrie Lee, reporting live from the Nasdaq site in New York, many thanks. TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Lord & Taylor Layoff 3,700, Close 32 Stores