National discount department store chain Stein Mart filed for bankruptcy on Wednesday after 112 years in business, and announced it will close most, if not all, of its 280 stores.
"The combined effects of a challenging retail environment coupled with the impact of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic have caused significant financial distress on our business," Chief Executive Officer Hunt Hawkins said Wednesday in an announcement of the bankruptcy filing. "The Company lacks sufficient liquidity to continue operating in the ordinary course of business."
Headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, Stein Mart has more than 280 stores in 30 states, including a store at Hamilton Village on Gunbarrel Road in Chattanooga that is one of 13 stores in Tennessee. Stein Mart specializes in clothing, shoes and housewares at discount prices and many of the stores are located in community shopping centers. As of May 30, the company employed about 8,400 people.
Hunt said Stein Mart will continue to operate normally "in the near term," and is evaluating the potential sale of its e Commerce business. A going-out-of-business sale will begin Friday or Saturday, according to spokeswoman Linda Tasseff, who said she anticipates all stores will close by the fourth quarter of 2020, with closing dates varying by store.
"Please know that this was an extremely difficult decision, and is deeply disappointing for all of us at Stein Mart," Hunt said in a written statement. "We have loved serving our communities over the years and are so grateful to our loyal customers who chose to shop our stores."
Photo by Dave Flessner / The Stein Mart store in Hamilton Village on Gunbarrel Road is one of 280 stores that may soon close after the retailer filed for bankruptcy Wednesday.Stein Mart closed its businesses in mid-March because of the pandemic. It began reopening in April, and eventually reopened all of its stores with reduced hours. It borrowed $10 million in June under the federal Paycheck Protection Program.
Stein Mart had said in June that Covid-19 caused financial distress for the company, adding in a regulatory filing that the company had "substantial doubt" it would continue to operate for the next year.
Stein Mart began in 1908 as a small department store in Mississippi before eventually expanding across 30 states. Each store has around 30 employees.
Stein Mart joins several other retailers have fallen into bankruptcy in recent months, including Tuesday Morning, JCPenney, Sur La Table and Muji. Pier 1 Imports, which filed for bankruptcy in February and is closing all of its stores, announced in July it found a buyer for its online operations and intellectual property.