Limited Stores, the well-known women's fashion retailer, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Tuesday of this week, and will be closing all of its stores. Based in New Albany, New York, the retailer will now be under the receivership of Sycamore Partners, a New York private-equity firm that is buying the store's intellectual property rights and other assets. The bankruptcy filing and sale are pending approval from the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware.
The chain announced a month ago that more than 240 employees would be laid off at its New Albany headquarters as a result of the sale, with both the CFO (John Buell) and Chief Executive Office (Diane Ellis) leaving in late 2016. The company also released a statement on January 6 stating that the site TheLimited.com, would continue to be in operation once the stores have closed. However, once the bankruptcy filing was made, a message was posted on the website indicting that it would be down temporarily.
The bankruptcy filing indicates that the store has more the 30 creditors with millions in unsecured claims, including its former CEO and CFO.
Limited opened its first store in 1963 in Upper Arlington and gradually expanded to more than 750 stores throughout the United States, grossing sales of over $1 billion until it was sold a decade ago to Sun Capital Partners.
The Limited store closing