Angela Pender
Staff Writer
Oh no, say it’s not so! Charlotte Russe has joined the former popular toy store, “Toys R Us”, in a bankruptcy file.
Before Fashion Nova, Charlotte Russe has been the go-to store for affordable outfits, especially for college students because of their low prices and “going out” outfits, so for many, it is heartbreaking to hear of the retail store’s closing.
“I loved Charolette Russe! I used to shop there all the time, so finding out that they are closing down is kind of shocking because I thought everybody still shopped there,” said communications student, Ciarra Miraj.
In February, the women’s clothing store filed for bankruptcy and announced that it will be closing over 500 of its stores. In bankruptcy court, liquidator SB360 Captial Partners won an auction for the company’s $160 million worth of inventory and other assets.
Charolette Russe had 87,000 employees, but only key company executives will receive a $559,000 bonus and others are not as fortunate because severance payments are not usually paid in a bankruptcy case.
According to CNN, Charolette Russe “is one of a long line of brick-and-mortar retailers that have struggled and died after being acquired by private equity firms.”
The company did not want to shut down and had hopes of reviving the brand which is why it filed for a bankruptcy protection.
“The goal was to use the bankruptcy process to shed debts and sell to a buyer who would keep it in business,” wrote a CNN reporter. However, those plans did not fall through because of losing the battle in court to SB360.
The retail market has not been doing well lately, and as a result, it has led to multiple retail store closures.
An article on businessinsider.com states that “retailers closed a record-breaking 102 million square feet of store space in 2017, then smashed that record in 2018 by closing another 155 million square feet of space”.
Unfortunately, Charolette Russe is one of the stores that is closing permanently, and is set to close all stores by the end of April.
Email Angela at:
apender1@live.esu.edu
