Stein Mart files for bankruptcy; to close nearly 300 stores, Retail News, ET Retail

Stein Mart files for bankruptcy to close nearly 300 storesST. PETERSBURG, Fla. : National low cost office retail store chain Stein Mart submitted for bankruptcy on Wednesday after 112 many years in business, and introduced that it will near most, if not all, of its 280 shops.

“The mixed effects of a complicated retail environment coupled with the affect of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic have prompted significant financial distress on our business,” wrote Chief Govt Officer Hunt Hawkins in a news launch. “The Company lacks sufficient liquidity to continue running in the normal training course of business.”

Headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, Stein Mart has a lot more than 280 shops in 30 states specializing in outfits, shoes and housewares at low cost costs. Numerous of the shops are found in community procuring facilities. As of May perhaps 30, the corporation employed about 8,four hundred persons.

Hawkins said Stein Mart will continue to function usually “in the in close proximity to time period,” and is evaluating the potential sale of its eCommerce business. A going-out-of-business sale will begin Friday or Saturday, according to spokeswoman Linda Tasseff, who said she anticipates all shops will near by the fourth quarter of 2020, with closing dates varying by retail store.

“Remember to know that this was an very hard decision, and is deeply disappointing for all of us at Stein Mart,” Hawkins said in a created statement. “We have beloved serving our communities more than the many years and are so grateful to our faithful prospects who selected to store our shops.”

Stein Mart closed its firms in mid-March simply because of the pandemic. It began reopening in April, and ultimately reopened all of its shops with lowered several hours. It borrowed $10 million in June beneath the federal Paycheck Defense System. The corporation very first started off accomplishing business in 1908, in Mississippi.

Far more then forty vendors have submitted for Chapter 11 this yr, which include a lot more than two dozen vendors who submitted since the pandemic began. Previous yr, 23 vendors submitted for Chapter 11.

Among the them: America’s oldest retailer, Lord & Taylor J. Crew J.C. Penney Neiman Marcus Men’s Wearhouse Jos. A. Financial institution Stage Suppliers and Ascena Retail Group, which owns Lane Bryant and Ann Taylor.