Report: Popular Retailer With Several Minnesota, Wisconsin Locations To Close All Stores

A report published on Wednesday afternoon says a popular women's clothing retailer plans to close all of its stores and shut down operations very soon.

Women's clothing retailer Francesca’s has reportedly said it will be winding down its business very soon, closing several stores across the region.

Francesca’s, which generally operates out of locations in malls, has locations in Duluth, St. Cloud, Rochester, Mankato, and a handful of Twin Cities stores in Minnesota, as well as Wisconsin stores in Eau Claire, La Crosse, Madison, Green Bay, Appleton, and the Milwaukee area.

The fashion website Women's Wear Daily is among the media outlets reporting that the company is preparing to shut down all of its stores this year.

NJ.com reports the fashion retailer "unexpectedly" laid off employees and has started the process of liquidating its inventory with plans to close soon.

FOX Business explains that Francesca's filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in December of 2020 in the face of financial challenges and a decline in in-store sales. When they filed for Chapter 11, part of their plan was to close 140 of their stores, leaving more than 500 locations across the country to stay open.

In the Women's Wear Daily article [PAYWALL], they explain that the company's assets were sold in 2021 with plans to grow through some new ventures, however rumblings that the company was unable to pay its bills started to surface at the beginning of 2024.

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While Francesca’s has not responded to any of the media outlets that have reached out about the latest news, it appears, by multiple accounts, that the company is preparing to shut down their remaining stores soon.a

A visit to the Duluth Francesca's store shows no clear indications that the retailer is preparing to close, it appears everything in the store is currently discounted, which is in alignment with the report the company is liquidating their inventory.