Sport and leisure brand Asics has shuttered its New York flagship store after only three years due to the continued impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The business said in a statement, according to SGB Online, that it will record a $22 million (¥2.3 billion) loss for the year ended December 2020 on the cancellation of the lease and due to an impairment of related assets.

“Amid the uncertainties regarding when the novel coronavirus pandemic will end, the company said it will further improve the profitability of the North American business by closing this store, considering the business risk of continuing to operate the store and other factors,” the business said in a statement.

The store opened in 2017 on Fifth Avenue, but high rents coupled with continued uncertainty around when the pandemic will end – with the US in particular seeing cases as high as 200,000 a day – have forced the business’ hand.

According to a report in Nikkei Asia, the business’ sales fell 19 per cent between January and September compared to the same period in 2019 and it is expected to take a net loss of ¥17 billion in fiscal 2020.