Brooks Brothers pushed into bankruptcy

Brooks Brothers, the 200-year-old company that dressed nearly every U.S. president, filed for bankruptcy protection Wednesday, the latest major clothing seller to be toppled by the coronavirus pandemic.

Founded in New York in 1818, Brooks Brothers survived two world wars, the Great Depression and even managed to stay afloat as dress standards eased in the office. But the pandemic pushed it into Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection with so many stores closed and, with millions working from home, a crisp suit pushed to the very bottom of shopping lists.

Brooks Brothers will permanently close more than a quarter of its 200 stores.

The retail sector was under severe pressure even before the pandemic. Rival Barneys New York filed for bankruptcy protection late last year. Since COVID-19 began to spread in the U.S, J.Crew, Neiman Marcus, J.C. Penney and other national retail chains have followed suit.

The virus has hollowed out spending in many places and accelerated the shift to online shopping, mostly to the benefit of big retailers like Walmart, Target and Amazon.com. Stores have begun to open in some parts of the country, but millions of people are still hunkered down at home.

Brooks Brothers said Wednesday that it will continue operations as it restructures and is looking to reopen shops that are not being closed permanently. The company employed 4,000 people in March.