Fashion group Giordano says its March quarter sales fell by 34.6 per cent as the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic saw stores shuttered in key markets. 

Comparable same-store sales growth was a negative 30.2 per cent. 

“Since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, many countries have implemented public health measures and ‘lockdowns’, often resulting in the halting of social and commercial activities,” the company said in a stock-exchange filing. 

“Moreover, the outcome of the Sino-US trade conflict remains unclear. All of these factors have adversely and significantly affected consumer sentiment and also foot traffic at our shops in various markets.”

Year on year, Girodano’s global net store count has reduced by 128, most of the closures in Mainland China, where the network has shrunk from 623 to 572. In Hong Kong and Macau the retailer has shuttered a net seven stores.