The 20 outlets being shut are generally new openings that struggled to "gain traction" during the recession in the U.S., Auckland-based Pumpkin Patch said in a statement today. Rents on the remaining 15 stores are being renegotiated, the retailer said. The stock jumped as much as 12 percent to become the biggest gainer in the country's benchmark index this year.

Pumpkin Patch started the year with 235 stores worldwide and gets almost half its sales in Australia. It slowed expansion in the U.K. and U.S. last year as retail spending plunged, and said in February it may shut some stores if widening losses in the U.S. couldn’t be turned around.

The closure plan "allows us to build from a lower base in a much more structured way and enables the United States company to go into the future with far more financial certainty," Chief Executive Officer Maurice Prendergast said. "Trading in other retail markets continues to be reasonably robust considering the generally poor retail conditions."