x
Breaking News
More () »

After nearly 200 years, Lord & Taylor goes out of business

It will close its remaining 38 stores and shut down its website, the company said.
Credit: AP
FILE - In this June 6, 2018, file photo the Lord & Taylor logo is seen next to a mannequin in a window display at their flagship store on Fifth Avenue in New York. Lord & Taylor, one of the country’s oldest department stores. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File)

NEW YORK — Editor's Note: The video above is from Aug. 3, 2020.

Lord & Taylor, one of the country's oldest department store chains, is going out of business after filing for bankruptcy earlier this month.

The retailer was sold just a year ago for $100 million to Le Tote, a San Francisco online clothing rental company, by Canadian parent Hudson's Bay Co.

Lord & Taylor will permanently close its remaining 38 stores and shut down its website, the company said Thursday. It is currently holding going out of business sales in stores and online.

RELATED: Lord & Taylor, Men's Wearhouse owner file for bankruptcy

RELATED: What corporate bankruptcy really means for consumers

Founded as a dry goods store in 1826, Lord & Taylor has struggled for years as more people shop online and in other stores. But the pandemic has changed the way people shop, accelerated the shift to online shopping, mostly to the benefit of big retailers like Amazon, Target and Walmart.

Since COVID-19 began to spread in the U.S, several clothing sellers have gone bankrupt, including Brooks Brothers, Neiman Marcus and J.C. Penney.

Lord & Taylor was shrinking even before the pandemic.

Last year, it closed its 11-story flagship store on New York’s Fifth Avenue, which it owned for more than a century. Amazon.com, the online shopping giant, is turning the building into an office for its tech workers.

Credit: AP
FILE - In this June 6, 2018, file photo the Lord & Taylor logo is seen next to a mannequin in a window display at their flagship store on Fifth Avenue in New York. Lord & Taylor, one of the country’s oldest department stores. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File)

RELATED: Ann Taylor owner files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy

RELATED: JC Penney cuts 1,000 jobs as chain shrinks

RELATED: Bed Bath & Beyond closing 200 stores over next 2 years

RELATED: Levi's to cut 700 office jobs due to coronavirus-related slump

Before You Leave, Check This Out