Payless is an international discount footwear chain. Established in 1956 by cousins Louis and Shaol Pozez, Payless was a privately held company owned by Blum Capital, and Golden Gate Capital. In 1961, it became a public company as the Volume Shoe Corporation which merged with The May Department Stores Company in 1979. In the 1980s, Payless was widely known in the U.S. for its Pro Wings line of discount sneakers, which often had Velcro straps instead of laces. In 1996, Payless became an independent publicly held company. In 2004, Payless announced it would exit the Parade chain and would close 100 Payless Shoe outlets. On August 17, 2007, the company acquired the Stride Rite Corporation and changed its name to Collective Brands, Inc. The company had a total revenue for 2011 of US$ 3.4 billion. The company also has a stunt premium banner, Palessi Shoes. Payless is currently owned by a group of investors led by Alden Global Capital and Axar Capital Management.
Sports Authority, Inc. was an American sports retailer. At its peak, Sports Authority operated 463 stores in 45 States and Puerto Rico. The company's website was on the GSI Commerce platform and supported the retail stores as well as other multi-channel programs. A joint venture with ÆON Co., Ltd., operates "Sports Authority" stores in Japan under a licensing agreement.
David's Bridal is a clothier in the United States that specializes in wedding dresses, prom gowns, and other formal wear. It is the largest American bridal-store chain.
Bon-Ton Holdings Inc. is an American online retailer and former department store chain founded in 1898. After rapid expansion in the 1990s and early 2000s, the original company had financial troubles, ultimately filing for bankruptcy in 2018 before being sold and liquidated. In September 2018, CSC Generation began operating as an online retailer headquartered in Merrillville, Indiana, with plans to open brick and mortar locations. In early 2021, CSC Generation sold all the acquired assets of Bon-Ton to New York-based BrandX.com, Inc in a private sale and included other brands such as Bergner's, Boston Store, Carson's, Elder-Beerman, Herberger's, and Younkers.
Foodtown is a northeastern United States supermarket cooperative founded in 1955 by Twin County Grocers in New Jersey. Currently, there are 66 Foodtown stores in New Jersey, New York, and Connecticut. Foodtown's corporate offices are located in Iselin, New Jersey.
New rue21, LLC (rue21) is an American specialty retailer of women's & men's casual apparel and accessories headquartered in the Pittsburgh suburb of Warrendale, Pennsylvania. Its clothes are designed to appeal to people who desire, wish, or feel to be 21. In 2013, Apax Partners, a global private-equity firm, acquired the company by funds advised for $42.00 per share in cash. rue21 filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on May 16, 2017, and emerged on September 22, 2017, after the company's reorganization plan was confirmed by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania. New owners include hedge funds BlueMountain Capital Management, Southpaw Asset Management and Pentwater Capital Management.
Ann Inc. is an American group of specialty apparel retail chain stores for women. The company headquartered in New York City and currently operates as a subsidiary of Ascena Retail Group. The stores offer classic-styled suits, separates, dresses, shoes and accessories. The brand is marketed under five divisions: Ann Taylor, Loft, Lou & Grey, Ann Taylor Factory, and Loft Outlet.
Charlotte Russe is an American clothing retail chain store that operates in the United States, headquartered in San Francisco, California. Fashions in the stores are targeted at women in their teens and twenties. As of November 2019, Charlotte Russe operates 135 stores, mostly in malls and shopping centers.
Tweeter, formerly Tweeter Etc. and Tweeter Home Entertainment, was a specialty consumer electronics retailer providing mid and high end electronic equipment, including flat panel TVs, plasma TVs, car radios, home theater systems, GPSs and more. It also focused much of its business on custom installation of electronics for homes and automobiles.
Say Yes to the Dress is an American reality television series on TLC which follows events at Kleinfeld Bridal in Manhattan. The series shows the progress of individual sales associates, managers, and fitters at the store, along with profiling brides as they search for the perfect wedding dress. Common themes include overwhelming advice of friends and family, the ability of the "perfect dress" to help a bride overcome personal difficulty, struggle with weight and body image concerns, and the challenge of staying in budget, especially in the case of dresses by Kleinfeld's exclusive designer, Pnina Tornai. Dresses sold on the show range from $1,300 to $40,000.
The Disney's Fairy Tale Weddings & Honeymoons is a program offering wedding and honeymoon services to couples at the Disneyland Resort in California, the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida, the Tokyo Disney Resort in Japan, the Disneyland Paris Resort in France, the Hong Kong Disneyland Resort in Hong Kong, the Shanghai Disneyland restort in China. and on the Disney Cruise Line. It operates within the Disney Parks, Experiences and Products segment of The Walt Disney Company.
Art Van Furniture Inc. was an American furniture retail store chain, with stores across the Midwestern United States. Founded in 1959, the company was headquartered in Warren, Michigan, and claimed to be the largest furniture retailer in the Midwest at its peak. In 2020, the company filed for bankruptcy and closed all of its stores.
BHLDN is an American women's clothing retailer that specializes in wedding dresses, bridesmaid dresses, bridal accessories, and wedding décor. Headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, BHLDN is owned by Urban Outfitters, and is a sister brand to Anthropologie.
Retail apocalypse refers to the closing of numerous brick-and-mortar retail stores, especially those of large chains, beginning around 2010 and accelerating due to the mandatory closures during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Brideside is an online retailer that sells designer bridesmaid dresses and accessories for the entire bridal party founded by Kellogg School of Management classmates Sonali Lamba and Nicole Staple. Started as an online-only business, the company expanded to include physical retail operations before closing on November 16, 2020.
JM Family Enterprises, Inc. (JMFE) is a diversified automotive company. It is ranked by Forbes as the 17th largest privately held company in the U.S. The company is ranked on the Fortune "100 Best Companies to Work For" list, and was No. 9 on the InformationWeek 500 list of the nation's leading information technology innovators.
The COVID-19 pandemic has taken a sharp economic toll on the retail industry worldwide as many retailers and shopping centers were forced to shut down for months due to mandated stay-at-home orders. As a result of these closures, online retailers received a major boost in sales as customers looked for alternative ways to shop and the effects of the retail apocalypse were exacerbated. A number of notable retailers filed for bankruptcy including Ascena Retail Group, Debenhams, Arcadia Group, Brooks Brothers, GNC, J. C. Penney, Lord & Taylor and Neiman Marcus.
Federated Group was an American chain of consumer electronics retail stores with 67 stores in California, Texas, Arizona, and Kansas. The company was founded by Wilfred Schwartz in 1970 and opened the first deep discount consumer electronics "superstore" in the United States. In 1987, Federated Group was the fourth-largest discounter of consumer electronics in the U.S. Its company headquarters were in City of Commerce, California and later in Sunnyvale, California. Federated Group was sold in 1987 to Atari and sold again in 1989 to Silo.
