H&M to close down struggling Cheap Monday brand

H&M, the world's second-biggest fashion retailer, said on Tuesday it would close down its struggling independent brand Cheap Monday.

H&M in 2008 bought Fabric Scandinavien AB, the owner of the Cheap Monday brand, whose trademark product is low-priced skinny jeans, and the store chains Weekday and Monki.

Cheap Monday products are sold mainly through around 3,000 resellers world-wide. They are also sold through its own online store, a flagship store in London and on Chinese Alibaba's online marketplace Tmall.

“Cheap Monday has a traditional wholesale business model, which is a model that has faced major challenges due to the shift in the industry,” H&M said in a statement.

“There has been a negative trend in the Cheap Monday's sales and profits for a long time. The H&M group therefore intends to close down Cheap Monday.”

Fabric Scandinavien was H&M's first-ever acquisition. H&M has since then launched several independent chains such as COS and & Other Stories to broaden its customer base.