Mervyns Exiting Oregon and Washington

Hayward, Calif., Mervyns is leaving Oregon and Washington, closing its 19 stores in those states by February 2007. The chain said that most of the units are low-volume stores with relatively high operating costs. This most recently announced downsizing, which also includes a store in Salt Lake City, Utah, would leave the chain with 170 locations in its core markets of Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho Nevada, New Mexico, Texas and Utah. The chain is upgrading its stores in those regions.