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JACKSONVILLE
Record & Observer THE STEIN MART BANKRUPTCY
Record Observer PATH OF& NO RETURN JACKSONVILLE
Its sales slumping for years, the JacksonvilleJACKSONVILLE based retailer tried to find a buyer and launch a turnaround initiative, but the pandemic changed everything.
THE MATHIS REPORT
Record & Observer Losing money
CONTRIBUTING WRITER
2018
2019
$10.5 million
$144,000
BY MARK BASCH
$26.6 million
2016 2017
$6.2 million
Stein Mart Inc.’s net loss for the past four years.
W Record & Observer JACKSONVILLE
ith sales dropping and the company unable to find a buyer, Jacksonvillebased Stein Mart Inc. in January 2019 launched an initiative called “POPS” - Path to Off-Price Success - to turn the business around. Stein Mart had 281 stores in 30 states as a national specialty offprice retailer offering designer and name-brand fashion apparel, home décor, accessories and shoes at discount prices. Early tests of POPS showed promise but before it could gain traction, the initiative was put on hold when the fashion retailer did find a buyer in January 2020, Kingswood Capital Management LLC. However, after the COVID-19 pandemic forced Stein Mart to close its stores in March, it had to terminate the merger agreement in April. When the stores did reopen, a resurgence of COVID-19 made it impossible to generate enough sales to keep the business viable. That left Stein Mart no alternative but to file a petition last week for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, according to a case management summary filed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida Jacksonville Division.
KAREN BRUNE MATHIS EDITOR
Sliding sales
The target customer Stein Mart describes its target customer as a woman who is both style conscious and value seeking. She typically is married and college educated. She may be multicultural, works at least part-time in a professional position and has above-average household income.
Comparablestore sales (sales at stores open for more than one year) also dropped for the past four years.
Sales by category Stein Mart sales by category in 2019. Category Percent Women’s apparel 49% Men’s 18% Home 10%
Year Change
Accessories 9%
2016 3.8%
Shoes 9%
2017 6.2%
Other 5%
2018 1.0% 2019 1.4%
MORE INSIDE n From its founding to its bankruptcy: Key events in the history of Stein Mart. Page 6 n Bankruptcy attorneys for Stein Mart and a creditor explain why it chose Chapter 11. Page 6
SEE STEIN MART, PAGE 6
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Gyms, grocers among tenants checking out Stein Mart stores Stein Mart Inc.’s six Jacksonville area stores might not stay empty for long after the bankrupt fashion chain liquidates its merchandise and closes in a few months. “Big picturewise, it’s great real estate,” said Carrie Smith, managing director of the Franklin Street real estate company. Stein Mart leases from 30,000 to 46,000 square feet of anchor box space at six properties. “They are all well-positioned,” Smith said. “We feel bad for Stein Mart, but we’ve had tenants who have expressed interest in taking those boxes if we get them back,” she said. Smith said potential tenants include gyms, supermarkets, furniture stores and soft good uses. “Burlington, TJX Companies and Hobby Lobby are all SEE MATHIS, PAGE 7
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