Report: Limited Brands Plans International Expansion

Columbus, Ohio, Limited Brands is looking to expand outside the United States now that the company has narrowed its focus to lingerie and beauty products, according to the Columbus Dispatch.

Speaking at an annual investor conference on Tuesday, Leslie H. Wexner, chairman and CEO, said the company is ready to move forward as the “new” Limited Brands.

Wexner said it will be a plus to go into the holiday shopping season without its former apparel stores, the report said. Earlier this year, Limited Brands sold majority interest in its Express and Limited Stores chains, leaving the company primarily focused on its Victoria’s Secret and Bath & Body Works stores.

“I’m delighted we don’t have apparel retail stores and that we are as dominant in the categories we are in,” Wexner said. “Limited Brands is a very different company with a history that should be disconnected from its present into its future.”

No timetable was given for opening Victoria’s Secret and Bath & Body stores outside the United States. The company does not expect to modify stores for other markets.

Wexner said the timing is right for overseas expansion because both brands are known around the world, while stores are limited to North America, the report said.