the company, through its brands – chico's, white house black market (whbm), and soma – is a leading omni-channel specialty retailer of women's private branded, sophisticated, casual-to-dressy clothing, intimates and complementary accessories. as of january 28, 2017, the company operated 1,501 stores in the us and canada and sold merchandise through franchise locations in mexico. the company's merchandise is also available at www.chicos.com, www.whbm.com, and www.soma.com. the chico’s brand was founded in 1983 as a boutique selling mexican folk art and cotton sweaters from a store on florida’s sanibel island. today, we offer women exclusively designed, private branded clothing featuring a combination of fabulous style with on-trend and one-of-a-kind designs for a wardrobe that is fashionable, unique, relaxed, figure-flattering, and comfortable. chico's acquired whbm in 2003 and then opened the first soma boutique in 2004. chico's fas, inc. embraces a culture of servant leadership. what