[StBernard] Caution - store closings- gift cards

[Westley Annis]

If you buy store gift cards, you may want to read the list of stores that
are scaling back or closing.    


 

	Be aware/gift cards for holidays/ Store closings

	We should all be careful of buying store brand gift cards for
holidays. 

	Problems are occurring rapidly. 

	Not on the list below is Linens & Things is under liquidation and
closing all stores by year end.
	
	Ann Taylor closing 117 stores nationwide A company spokeswoman said
The company hasn't revealed which stores will be shuttered.. It will let the
Stores that will close this fiscal year know over the next month.
	
	Eddie Bauer to close more stores. Eddie Bauer has already Closed 27
shops in the first quarter and plans to close up To two more outlet stores
by the end of the year.
	 
	Cache closing stores. Women's retailer Cache announced that it is
closing 20 to 23 stores This year.
	
	Lane Bryant, Fashion Bug, Catherines closing 150 stores nationwide
The owner Of retailers Lane Bryant , Fashion Bug , Catherines Plus Sizes
will close About 150 under-performing stores this year.The company hasn't
Provided a list of specific store closures and can't say when it will offer
That info, spokeswoman Brooke Perry said today.
	
	Talbots, J. Jill closing stores. About a month ago, Talbots
announced that it will be shuttering all 78 of its kids and men's stores.
Now the company says it will close Another 22 under-preforming stores.. The
22 stores will be a mix of Talbots women's and J. Jill , another chain it
owns. The closures will occur this Fiscal year,according to a company press
release.
	
	Gap Inc. Closing 85 stores. In addition to its namesake chain, Gap
also owns Old Navy and BananaRepublic . The company said the closures - all
planned For fiscal 2008 - will be weighted toward the Gap brand.
	
	Foot Locker to close 140 stores. In the company press release and
during its Conference call with analysts today, it did not specify where the
future store Closures - all planned in fiscal 2008. Yhe company could not be
Immediately reached for comment.
	
	Wickes is going out of business. Wickes Furniture is going Out of
business and closing all of its stores. Wickes, a 37-year-old retailer that
targets middle-income customers, filed for bankruptcy Protection last month.
	
	Goodbye Levitz / BOMBAY - closed already. The furniture retailer,
which is going out Of business. Levitz first announced it was going out of
business and closing all 76 of Its stores in December. The retailer dates
back to 1910 when Richard Levitz opened his First furniture store in Lebanon
, PA.  In the 1960s, the warehouse/showroom concept brought Levitz to The
forefront of the furniture industry. The local Levitz closures will follow
the shutdown of Bombay .
	
	Zales, Piercing Pagoda closing stores. The owner of Zales and
Piercing Pagoda previously Said it plans to close 82 stores by July 31.
Today, it announced that it is closing Another 23 under-performing stores.
The company said it's not providing a list of specific Store closures. Of
the 105 locations planned for closure, 50 are kiosks and 55 are Stores.
	
	Disney Store owner has the right to close 98 stores The Walt Disney
Company Announced it acquired about 220 Disney Stores from subsidiaries of
The Children's Place Retail Stores. The exact number of stores acquired Will
depend on negotiations with landlords. Those subsidiaries of Children'sPlace
filed for bankruptcy protection in late March.. Walt Disney In the news
release said it has also obtained the right to close about 98 Disney Stores
in the U.S. The press release didn't list those stores.

	
	Home Depot store closings ( E. Brunswick , Rt 18 just put up their
closing sign) ATLANTA - Nearly 7+ months after its chief executive said
there were no plans To cut the number of its core retail stores, The Home
Depot Inc. announced Thursday that it is shuttering 15 of them amid a
slumping U.S.economy and Housing market.The move will affect 1,300
employees.. It is the first time The world's largest home improvement store
chain has ever closed a flagship Store for performance reasons.. Its shares
rose almost 5 percent. The Atlanta-based company said the under-performing
U.S.stores Being closed represent less than 1 percent of its existing stores
. They Will be shuttered within the next two months.
	
	CompUSA (CLOSED) clarifies details on store Closings Any extended
warranties purchased for products Through CompUSA will be honored by a
third-party provider, Assurant Solutions. Gift cards, rain checks, and
rebates purchased prior to December 12 can be Redeemed at any time during
the final sale.. For those who have a gadget Currently in for service with
CompUSA, the repair will be completed and the gadget will be returned to
owners.
	
	Macy's - 9 stores
	
	Movie Gallery - 160 stores as part of reorganization plan to exit
bankruptcy. The video rental company plans to close 400 of 3,500 Movie
Gallery and Hollywood Video stores in addition to the 520 locations the
video rental chain closed last fall.
	
	Sprint Nextel - 125 retail locations New Sprint Nextel CEO Dan Hesse
appears to have inherited a company bleeding subscribers by the thousands,
and will now officially be dropping the ax on 4,000 employees and 125 retail
locations. Amid the loss of 639,000 postpaid customers in the fourth
quarter, Sprint will be cutting a total of 6.7%of its work force (following
the 5,000 layoffs last year) and 8% of company-owned brick-and-mortar
stores, while remaining mute on other rumors that it will consolidate its
headquarters in Kansas . Sprint Nextel shares are down $2.89, or nearly 25%,
at the time of this writing. 

	

	J. C. Penney, Lowe's and Office Depot are scaling back
	
	Ethan Allen Interiors: The company announced plans to close 12 of
300+stores in an effort to cut costs. 

	
	Wilsons the Leather Experts - 158 stores
	
	Pacific Sunwear will close its 154 Demo stores after a review of
strategic alternatives for the urban-apparel brand. Seventy-four
under-performing Demo stores closed last May.
	
	Sharper Image: The company recently filed for bankruptcy protection
and announced that 90 of its 184 stores are closing. The retailer will still
operate 94 stores to pay off debts, but 90 of these stores have performed
poorly and also may close.

	KB Toys posted a list of 356 stores that it is closing around the
United States as part of its bankruptcy reorganization. To see the list of
store closings, go to the KB Toys Information web site, and click on Press
Information. 

	 

	

	Dillard's to Close More Stores  Dillard's Inc. said it will continue
to focus on closing under-performing stores, reducing expenses and improving
its merchandise in 2008. At the company's annual shareholder meeting, CEO
William Dillard II said the company will close another six under-performing
stores this year.