Across the globe, companies are bowing to the spiraling economy and declaring bankruptcy, with some even announcing plans to shutter their doors permanently. Longtime casual fashion favorite rue21 is the latest victim of the spreading retail reduction, and it’ll be gone before you know it.
It takes time for companies to fully shut down, but rue21 is speeding through the process. Over the years, the company has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on three separate occasions, but it seems this final time will be the last. Twice before the company managed to recover, both times emerging stronger than before, but it’s not so lucky this time around.
Despite high hopes for another recovery, rue21 is closing down for good. Stores are pumping out liquidation sales across the country, but once all that extra product is offloaded, rue21 will be no more.
When does rue21 officially close?
Rue21 filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy for the third and final time on May 1, 2024, and the business plans to close all 540 of its stores, scattered across the nation. The company listed liabilities ranging between $100 million and $500 million, and is looking to sell its intellectual property alongside the shuttering of its physical locations.
Liquidations sales have been emptying rue21 store shelves for weeks now, as the company works to offload its existing product before finalizing the brand’s closure. They started at the beginning of May, when the company first declared bankruptcy, and are expected to continue for the next two to four weeks.
There’s no specific date on which all rue21 locations will officially be shut down, but customers will start to see locations shut down over the coming weeks. The company has aims to gradually close all of its more than 500 locations over the next two months, which will likely see each and every rue21 in the nation shut down by the end of summer. With the current projected timeline, the company will be completely gone by mid-July, or early August at the absolute latest.
