
The company said the 16-store chain would be closed once agreement is reached with landlords and inventory is sold.
'Iridesse has been recording an operating loss since it started a few years ago,' Mark Aaron, head of investor relations at Tiffany, told Reuters.
'That, combined with a difficult retail environment, led us to make this decision. In a better environment, the concept might have been viable.'
The jewelry sector has come under pressure as consumers cut back spending on nonessential items. In the past year, companies such as Whitehall Jewelers Holdings have filed for bankruptcy and held liquidation sales.
Investor Warren Buffett said this week that luxury goods companies will have a bad year in 2009. Last month, Tiffany said Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc agreed to buy $250 million of debt from the jewelry retailer.
Tiffany shares rose $1.32, or 7.8 percent, to close at $18.26 on the New York Stock Exchange.
(Reporting by Karen Jacobs; editing by Richard Chang) Keywords: TIFFANY/
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