Retailers Cut Back on Choices; ‘We Don’t Need Three Types of Red’

Coach is cutting its handbag styles by half. Bed Bath & Beyond is reducing its can opener selection by two-thirds. Kohl’s is culling its towel offerings by nearly a fifth.

Retailers ramped up choices in recent decades as the internet created a so-called endless aisle that freed them from the space constraints of physical stores, according to analysts and industry executives. They tried to capitalize on the shift toward personalization with a desire to please everyone and added variety to tempt people to buy items they didn’t need.

Now, with choices overwhelming shoppers and clogging supply chains, some…