Forman Mills finds a buyer and avoids bankruptcy
The buyer, Shoppers World, based out of New York, said it intends to keep all Forman Mills locations open.
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Forman Mills, the New Jersey-based retail discount store, has avoided a bankruptcy by finding a buyer for the company.
Forman Mills told the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry on June 12 that sale efforts were underway, but “may not be successful.”
The buyer, Shoppers World, based out of New York, said it intends to keep all Forman Mills locations open, and will reopen the store at 48th and Market Streets, according to the Philadelphia Business Journal.
“We’re pleased to be joining a company with such longevity, strong community roots, and financial stability. I’m happy for our team and our vendor partners,” Forman Mills CEO Mike Kvitko told the Business Journal.
If a sale hadn’t been reached, Forman Mills had said it expected to file for bankruptcy and might begin closing stores and laying off 245 workers in Pennsylvania. Store closures in the state would have affected locations in Philadelphia, Wyncote, Whitehall, and Glenolden.
Earlier this month, Forman Mills, which has been in business since 1985, laid off 119 workers at its headquarters in Pennsauken, according to reporting from WHYY. Lawyers have filed a class-action lawsuit alleging the company did not provide enough warning for the layoffs as is required by law.
The announcement of the sale comes as other major brick-and-mortar retail stores have struggled financially in recent months. In April, David’s Bridal announced it would lay off over 9,000 workers across the country while Bed Bath & Beyond filed for bankruptcy.
Richard “Rick” Forman started the Forman Mills business selling T-shirts at a flea market on Frankford Avenue. He grew the company to 36 stores, before selling it in 2016 to Goode Partners L.L.C., a New York investment group.
In 2021, Forman started a new discount store, Turn7, which sells items bought online and returned, overstocked, or from companies going out of business.
Sam Dushey Sr. started Shoppers World in the 1930s out of Baltimore selling children’s ware. Today, the apparel and home goods store has more than 40 location, with two in Philadelphia.