Charlotte Russe files for bankruptcy, will close 94 stores


The clothing chain Charlotte Russe has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, the company announced Monday, and will shutter 94 stores.
There are 500 Charlotte Russe stores in the United States. In a court filing, the chain said it "suffered from a dramatic decrease in sales and in-store traffic," and was dealing with "the burden of maintaining a large brick-and-mortar presence."
Sales plummeted from $928 million in 2017 to $795 million in 2018, and the company said it also missed the mark when it came to marketing to young women and focusing on basics rather than trendy fashions. Charlotte Russe is hoping to find a new owner, and plans to return to its "on-trend, fast-fashion model."
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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
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