Bankrupt Lord + Taylor to close 3 of its 4 CT stores

STAMFORD — Bankrupt department store chain Lord + Taylor plans to close three of its four Connecticut stores, with liquidation sales set to start this week at its establishments at malls in Danbury, Trumbull and Farmington — but its standalone store in Stamford has been spared.

Stemming from Lord + Taylor and parent company Le Tote’s bankruptcy filings Sunday, those closings and another 16 in other states comprise half of Lord + Taylor’s locations.

While the shutdowns in the country’s oldest department-store chain deal another blow to an already reeling retail sector, they do not come as a surprise after reports in recent months that Lord + Taylor had been weighing liquidation sales as soon as its stores reopened from temporary closings sparked by the coronavirus crisis.

“The company will simultaneously solicit bids for a going-concern sale of both its Le Tote and Lord + Taylor businesses, and conduct targeted store closing sales to maximize the value of its business,” Lord + Taylor officials said in a statement late Monday.

Trumbull officials have long been aware that Lord + Taylor might liquidate its store, according to Trumbull First Selectman Vicki Tesoro.

Among the preparations for major changes at the Westfield Trumbull mall, the town’s Planning and Zoning Commission in October 2018 approved a zone change that allowed more entertainment uses, limited housing and other adaptations at the shopping center.

“We are in regular contact with the mall management, and we will continue to work in partnership to support the businesses there and a vibrant vision for the future,” Tesoro said in May.

“Again, we don’t like to see any business close or anyone lose their job. We do feel that the Lord + Taylor site ... at the mall is a prime location on that property. We believe that if they do close permanently, there will be interest in that location.”

There had not been any discussions between Lord + Taylor and Trumbull officials since May, Tesoro said Monday.

Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton declined to comment Monday about the closing of the store at the Danbury Fair mall.

Macerich, the owner of Danbury Fair, to declined to comment Tuesday. Messages left for the owners of Westfield Trumbull and Westfarms were not immediately returned.

In Stamford, Lord + Taylor is the sole occupant of the building at 110 High Ridge Road. It represents the business’ de facto flagship location in the state.

Nearly four years ago, Lord + Taylor completed a nearly two-year renovation of the 157,000-square-foot property.

As part of the project, the women’s shoe department was expanded by more than 3,500 square feet, to nearly 13,000 square feet. The jewelry department was doubled in size, to 4,500 square feet. And the dress department nearly doubled, to nearly 8,000 square feet.

Thomas Madden, Stamford’s economic development director, said he was not surprised by the bankruptcy but heartened by the company’s decision to keep open the Stamford establishment.

“The (bankruptcy) move allows for the company to shed debt and get out of leases and restart in a COVID-19 impacted world,” Madden said. “This is another case where a company was highly leveraged, with little cash reserves and thin margins to make up new reserves during the COVID shutdown.”

In its announcement, the company did not specify the job losses that would result from the shutdowns.

Among its closings in neighboring states, Lord + Taylor said it would shutter its stores in Albany, Bay Shore, Buffalo, Rochester and Syracuse in New York and in Boston.

Lord + Taylor, which began as a Manhattan dry goods store in 1824, had struggled long before the emergence of COVID-19.

In January 2019, it shuttered its flagship store in Manhattan, ending a 104year run for the midtown establishment. The property was sold for $850 million to co-working firm WeWork and partner Rhone Capital.

“Making that kind of decision was challenging, but the reason that we did it was based on building a more financially solid foundation,” then-Lord + Taylor President Vanessa LeFebvre said in an interview last year. “Ultimately, it gives you the freedom to focus on the suburban stores.”

Also last year, Hudson’s Bay Co. sold Lord + Taylor to Le Tote, which is a French rental-clothing company.

In the past few months, dozens of other retailers have filed for bankruptcy, with the pandemic hammering an industry already battered by the relentless growth of e-commerce.

The pace through the first half of 2020 far surpasses the number of retail bankruptcies for all of last year.

Tailored Brands, which owns Men’s Wearhouse and Jos. A. Bank stores, also filed for bankruptcy on Sunday.

Jos. A Bank has six Connecticut locations, including establishments in Danbury, Fairfield and Milford. Men’s Wearhouse has 10 stores in the state, including shops in Danbury, Stamford, Milford and Hamden.

Last month, Brooks Brothers, a 200-year-old company that has dressed nearly every U.S. president, filed for bankruptcy. In the past few months, it has closed stores in Stamford, Darien and Westport.

Other bankruptcies include J. Crew, J.C. Penney, Neiman Marcus, Stage Stores and Ascena Retail Group, which owns Lane Bryant in addition to Ann Taylor.