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Below is a complimentary research note from our Retail analysts Brian McGough and Jeremy McLean. If you are an institutional investor interested in accessing our research email sales@hedgeye.com |
Stein Mart files for bankruptcy. That makes 35 this year, over half of which are apparel related.
SMRT is planning to close most if not all of its stores, it has just under 300 and did about $1.2bn in sales last year. The last handful of filers have been substantial in size. We continue to expect to see more filings, and more announced door closures.
We mentioned yesterday that reports estimate still about 30% of retailers not paying their rent in July even as things have for the most part re-opened.
On the other side, both Sur La Table and Brooks Brothers appear to have buyers to come out of bankruptcy. They’ll exist longer with a somewhat small store base.
Unless a company was simply overwhelmed by a debt burden, we expect fundamentals for many of the retailers coming out of bankruptcy will mean they are considering a ‘chapter 22’ within a few years.
If you are an institutional investor interested in accessing our research email sales@hedgeye.com