RUMFORD – A high-end women’s lingerie business will close its doors by the end of November.

Instead, the owner, Samantha Byam, will offer the same brands as well as a greater variety, from home through the Internet.

The Secret Beneath at 130 Congress St. opened just over a year ago.

“We have not met the goals we had hoped,” Byam said Thursday afternoon.

She attributes much of the business problems to a lagging economy that has affected the way people spend their money.

“These are not necessities and people have other options,” she said “In time, we could have met our goals but we haven’t had the business we had hoped,” she said.

She plans to expand the number and varieties of bras, negligees, robes, and other nightwear and undergarments through her Web site, www.thesecretbeneath.com.

She will continue to market such products as Wacoal, Goddess, Spanx, Freya and Fantasie through traditional means, such as in newspapers, as well as through her Web site.

The site went online in September and has already received several orders, some from as far away as California and Massachusetts, she said.

Byam employs her sister, Tara Hemingway, part time.

“I’ve loved doing it and I’ve gained a lot of experience and I like seeing people,” she said.

All gift certificates should be redeemed before Nov. 28.