Pier 1 Imports to close up to 450 stores — nearly half of its locations

Pier 1 Imports plans to close up to 450 locations, nearly half of its 942 stores, the company announced Monday.

The Fort Worth, Texas-based home goods retailer said the decision to reduce its store footprint is needed “to better align its business with the current operating environment.”

“Although decisions that impact our associates are never easy, reducing the number of our brick-and-mortar locations is a necessary business decision,” Pier 1 CEO and Chief Financial Officer Robert Riesbeck said in a news release.

The company will also close certain distribution centers and reduce its corporate expenses because of the “revised store footprint.”

“Fiscal third quarter sales and margins remained under pressure as we completed our efforts to clear out non-go-forward merchandise,” said Riesbeck, who was named CEO in November. ”Looking ahead, we believe that we will deliver improved financial results over time as we realize the benefits of our business transformation and cost-reduction initiatives.”

According to Bloomberg, the company is preparing to file for bankruptcy. Pier 1 officials declined to comment. .

In April, Pier 1 announced it could close as many as 145 stores, about 15% of its nearly 1,000 locations. A week later, S&P Global Ratings warned that the “potential for a bankruptcy filing or debt restructuring is continuing to increase” for Pier 1 as its retail performance continues “to deteriorate significantly.”

Then-interim CEO Cheryl Bachelder repeated that “up to 15%” of locations could close on Sept. 25 during a quarterly earnings call with analysts and said officials were working with A&G Realty to “determine the ideal footprint.”

In Monday’s news release, the company said it is “utilizing the services of a third-party liquidator to help manage the store closings.” What stores will close and a timeline for when the liquidation sales will start was not immediately available.

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