Vera Bradley To Close New Haven, Indiana Facility

(RTTNews) - Women's accessory maker and retailer Vera Bradley Inc (VRA) on Tuesday said it plans to close its New Haven, Indiana manufacturing facility, citing increased production costs compared with overseas factories.

In a statement, the company said it plans to close its manufacturing facility in New Haven, Indiana (metropolitan Fort Wayne) beginning on May 9, unless business conditions necessitate earlier action.

The facility acccounts for about 5% of the company's products manufactured, and employs about 250 associates. The company began manufacturing in this facility in 2009.

Excluding the manufacturing facility, the company employs about 630 associates in metropolitan Fort Wayne, with a total of about 2,300 associates throughout the U.S.

"Vera Bradley has its roots in Fort Wayne and remains deeply committed to the area," CEO Robert Wallstrom said.

Vera Bradley said it would incur charges of $3 million relating to the facility closing in the fourth quarter of the fiscal year ended January 2015.

The company expects to incur restructuring and other charges of up to $7 million in the first quarter of the fiscal year ending January 2016.

Vera Bradley expects that the plant closure will reduce operating costs by about $12 million annually beginning in the fourth quarter fiscal 2016.