Francesca’s Files for Bankruptcy, Again; Closing All Stores
After 25 years of operations, Francesca’s is going out of business. The Houston-based young women’s clothing and accessories chain filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection with plans to close its stores and liquidate. The filing, in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Jersey, comes after reports in January that Francesca’s was preparing to shut down operations. Tiger Group, SB360 Capital Partners, and GA Group, acting as advisors to Francesca's, have commenced court-approved store closing sales across the retailer’s entire store fleet as part of the Chapter 11 process. The chain operates approximately 400 stores across 45 states.
In its filing, Francesca's reported $10 million to $50 million in assets and $50 million to $100 million in liabilities. The retailer cited several factors leading to its filing, including a data breach on Jan. 31, 2023 that impacted sales, a disruptive e-commerce upgrade, the underperformance of noncore brands, spending on marketing and promotion efforts to drive sales, and the failure of an anticipated capital infusion in December 2025.
Total Retail's Take: This is the second time in about six years that a corporate entity operating Francesca's has filed for bankruptcy. Francesca’s, which was founded in 1999, previously filed for bankruptcy in 2020 and was sold in January 2021 to Francesca’s Acquisition LLC, an affiliate of private equity firm TerraMar Capital, for $18 million. Tiger Capital and SB360 Capital Group were also part of the group that acquired Francesca’s out of bankruptcy in 2021.
As it begins the process to close all stores and liquidate, Francesca's is running discounts of 25 percent to 40 percent off all product and says new merchandise will continue to arrive. "This process provides a structured path to pursue the best outcome for all stakeholders," said Curt Kroll, Francesca’s CFO, in a company press release. The company had been trying to regain its foothold for years after business peaked between 2016 and 2017, when it operated about 700 stores with over $500 million in sales.
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Kristina Stidham is the digital content director at Total Retail and sister brands Women in Retail Leadership Circle and Women Leading Travel & Hospitality at NAPCO Media. She is passionate about digital media and handles video, podcast and virtual event production for all brands. You can often find her at WIRLC, TR, WLT&H or industry events with her camera and podcasting equipment—or at home on Zoom—recording interviews with thought leaders and business executives.
Kristina holds a B.A. in Media Studies and Production from the Temple University Klein College of Media and Communication in Philadelphia. Go Owls! When she's not in the office, she loves to go on long walks, sing around the house, hangout with her family and two pet guinea pigs, and travel to new places.
