FRANKFURT, Germany — German fashion house Hugo Boss is planning to abandon the luxury market and go back to its roots of selling premium men's clothing, its chief executive told Handelsblatt.

"The effort to make inroads in the luxury market didn't prove to be particularly helpful for our business," Mark Langer was quoted as saying on Tuesday in his first interview since taking over at Hugo Boss.

Former boss Claus-Dietrich Lahrs had taken the German label more upmarket as the luxury market boomed, opening more than 400 stores worldwide and putting a bigger focus on womenswear.

But the luxury sector is now going through its most severe slowdown in seven years, prompting Lahrs to quit in February as Hugo Boss sales slumped in the United States and China.

Langer plans to close unprofitable stores and he wants to cut annual costs by €50 million ($55 million).

By Harro ten Wolde; editor: Ruth Pitchford.

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