Christopher & Banks Seeks Chapter 11 Bankruptcy

Christopher & Banks Seeks Chapter 11 Bankruptcy

Women’s clothing retailer Christopher & Banks Corporation has voluntarily filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Jersey, according to a Thursday (Jan. 14) statement from the company.

President and Chief Executive Officer Keri Jones said in the statement that the company has taken strong measures to safeguard its business as it kept serving its shoppers “in a healthy and safe environment” since the beginning of the pandemic.

“Despite the tremendous advancements we have made in executing our strategic plan, due to the financial distress resulting from the pandemic and its ongoing impact, we elected to initiate this process and pursue a potential sale of the business in whole or in part to position the Company for the future,” Jones said in the statement.

Christopher & Banks said it has filed motions with the court to seek permission to maintain its operations by paying vendors and suppliers in the usual course of operations, paying staffer wages and benefits without disruption and the utilization of cash collateral.

The retailer said in the statement that the motions are normal in the Chapter 11 process and it foresees that they will be green lit “shortly after the commencement of its Chapter 11 case.”

Christopher & Banks also said it is talking with possible purchasers for its online shopping platform and related property. Moreover, the retailer foresees shuttering many of its physical retail locations, or potentially each of them.

Minnesota-based Christopher & Banks Corporation showcases privately branded women’s clothing and accessories, and it ran just under 450 shops in 44 states as of Jan. 13.

In September, Christopher & Banks reported a 70.9 percent jump in eCommerce sales for Q2, which ended on Aug. 1.

“We saw accelerated growth in both our store customers shopping online for their first time as well as in new online customers, giving us even greater confidence in our longer-term opportunities,” Jones said in an announcement at the time.