Samsonite to Fire 340, End U.S. Production

Samsonite Corp., the world’s largest luggage maker, said it will cease manufacturing in the United States for the first time in its 91-year history, citing higher labor costs and an underutilized plant. Samsonite said it will lay off 340 employees, or 4% of its work force, and close a plant in Denver that was operating at less than 10% of its capacity. Samsonite said demand for hard-cased luggage, the kind made at its Denver plant, has fallen sharply in recent years. The company also said it had reorganized its U.S. sales and marketing work force and consolidated its manufacturing operations in Tucson with its facility in Mexico. It plans to take a charge of about $8.4 million as a result of the measures. Samsonite’s shares closed down 25 cents at $3 on Nasdaq.