e seen significant change in the business. In May 1998, The Limited, Inc. completely divested itself of Abercrombie & Fitch stock. They gave shareholders the choice of exchanging their Limited shares for shares of A&F in a process known as a modified Dutch tender.Today, The Limited, Inc. operates as four separate business groups: Women's Brands, Emerging Brands, Intimate Brands, and Support Businesses.Women's Brands:Express:The Express underwent reconstruction in the early 1990s to have a more sophisticated European image instead of the neon-lit high-tech store of the mid-1980s. The company now describes its Express stores as providing "hot new fashion to young women in their early twenties." Merchandise includes "young and spirited fashions of good taste and quality." A private label brand created for the Express is called Compagnie Internationale. Express added petite sizes in 1995. The 753 Express stores in operation as of year-end 1997 were located mostly in shopping malls. Limited Stores:This is the flagship division of the organization. Originally, merchandise in these stores was targeted to women between the ages of 16 and 25, but that orientation changed to women in their thirties and forties several years ago. Limited Stores recently shifted its orientation to women who want "casual American fashion." These stores focus on the sale of medium-priced fashion clothing and accessories. The company began opening larger-format Limited stores in 1990, and older stores took on a new look to provide additional selling space. Most of the 629 Limited stores are located in regional shopping centers or malls across the U.S.Henri Bendel: In 1985, the The Limited, Inc. purchased this upscale fashion store. The store offers the best in clothing and accessories from international designers. The price of clothes correlates with "today's modern woman in her mid-thirties in a higher-income household." This is the only upscale store ...
