The Limited stores reportedly shutting down as of January 7

By

Kate Dingwall

Published
Jan 5, 2017

After months of bankruptcy speculation, The Limited stores across the United States are displaying "closing forever" signs and some The Limited stores across the United States have confirmed they will be shutting their doors for the last time on January 7, 2017. 

Over the past few days, more and more stores across the US have been placing “closing forever” and “everything must go” signs in The Limited locations leading up to the January 7 closing date. Currently, only US locations will be shutting this week (approximately 250 stores), according to various media reports.

The Limited was once a hugely popular chain with teens and young adults in the early aughts but has fallen out of favor due to the retailer’s lack of a strong online presence and the average customer’s preference to shop online over malls.  

The Limited isn't the only mall-located retailer to take a hit. Prodco found in a retail traffic data survey that North American malls have been suffering losses over the past few years, with 2016 and especially the last quarter, taking the biggest toll on malls. Fitch Ratings recently predicted the next few retailers to declare bankruptcy, with J. Crew, Claire's, Sears, and Nine West all being named as having a high risk of defaulting. Almost every one of the 30 brands named in the 114-page report relied on high mall traffic to fuel sales.

Although neither The Limited nor Sun Capital Partners, the owner of the retail chain, have officially announced its bankruptcy, a store manager told the Phoenix Business Journal that the company has told employees it will be filing.

All signs over the past few months have pointed to the end of The Limited. Company executives have been abandoning ship – CEO Diane Ellis left The Limited for Chico’s in October and the interim CEO, John Buell, stepped down after just two months. Mass layoffs hit the retailer’s headquarters in early December, with ‘disappointing results’ being cited as the cause of layoffs.

The Limited was first opened in 1963 by Les Wexner, who now sits at the helm of L Brands. L Brands owned The Limited until 2007 when it was bought out by Sun Capital Partners.