Payless is staging a comeback less than a year after closing all its US stores in one of the largest retail liquidations in history

Hayley Peterson

January 16, 2020 1:07 PM

Payless ShoeSource is relaunching in the US after emerging from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, the company said Thursday.

payless

Payless filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in February 2019 and subsequently closed all 2,100 of its US stores in what was one of the largest retail liquidations in history by store count.
The company will relaunch its US website and open stores in the US, Payless said. It also hired a new management team.
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Payless is staging a comeback less than a year after executing one of the largest retail liquidations in history.

The discount shoe retailer said Thursday that it has emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection with 710 stores in operation globally and a new team of executives.

As part of its comeback, Payless will relaunch its US website and open new stores in the US, a company representative told Business Insider. Further details around the US relaunch will be revealed in the coming weeks, she said.

Payless filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in February 2019 and subsequently closed all 2,100 of its US stores in what was one of the largest retail liquidations in history by store count. The company also shut down its US website, which now directs users to shop for its products on Amazon.

Payless has since hired a new executive management team led by its new chief executive, Jared Margolis, who was formerly president of the brand management and licensing agency CAA-GBG .

Payless also hired Justo Fuentes, former president of BATA Latin America, to serve as CEO of its Latin American division, which is currently the company's largest business unit.

"We intend to leverage Payless' existing infrastructure, which is best in class and already includes product design, development, distribution, marketing, and a strong relationship with major footwear manufacturers," Margolis said in a statement. "Thus, providing the new Payless with the ability to be nimble, innovative, and to fast-track our biggest growth opportunity: the United States."

The company said it plans to unveil a new strategy in 2020 that involves collaborating with "high-profile individuals and brands to ensure exclusive product offerings at a compelling price-point for its loyal base." The company said it's also considering new technologies to streamline the customer experience.

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