Women’s specialty chain Francesca’s appears to be getting ready to shut down operations, according to reporting in WWD. The Jan. 15, 2026 article quoted a source that said the retailer’s merchants were “let go yesterday with no warning,” and cited one of the chain’s former buyers who indicated that Francesca’s plans to liquidate all goods.
The WWD article also said that when contacted for comment, a Francesca’s customer service representative wrote in an email that “we are liquidating our inventory and closing soon.” Other sources indicated that the liquidation of inventory was expected to begin as soon as Jan. 16.
Founded in 1999, Francesca’s began trading on the Nasdaq in July 2011. The COVID-19 pandemic dealt a blow to the mall-based retailer’s business, and it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in December 2020. In January 2021 Francesca’s was sold to private investment firms for $18 million in cash and the assumption of $7.75 million in debt in a deal designed to keep at least 275 of Francesca’s remaining 551 locations open.
At press time the Francesca’s website still indicated that the retailer operates 475 boutique stores.
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