PC vendor Gateway has closed 27 - about 8 per cent - of its Gateway Country stores in the US, amid efforts to cut costs, the company said Thursday.
Gateway closed the PC-retail stores on Monday and left some open only to complete PC repairs and consumer-training classes, said Gateway spokesman Brad Williams.
"They are spread throughout the country," Williams said.
Gateway first said it planned to close approximately 30 stores to cut costs during a February 28 analyst meeting in San Diego, Williams said.
Approximately 540 employees are affected by the store closures, but a majority of them are expected to be transferred to other Gateway stores, Williams said. The stores that were closed are geographically positioned near other Gateway Country stores, he said.
Gateway will now have about 300 stores in the US. A review also is expected of the approximate 50 Gateway Country stores outside the US., Williams said.
Like many IT companies, Gateway's early 2001 financial results have been mixed and in January the company announced that it would cut 10 per cent of its workforce. Gateway also has taken measures to simplify its product lines to cut costs.
