New York (CNN) David’s Bridal, one of the largest sellers of wedding gowns in the United States, is laying off thousands of workers nationwide, according to a notice filed with the Pennsylvania Department of Labor.
The announcement said the retailer is eliminating 9,236 positions across the United States. In Pennsylvania, the layoffs are set to begin on April 14 and end on August 11 and affect 15 stores in nine counties in the state. The Work Adjustment and Retraining Notifications did not specify when the layoffs would begin or how many stores would be affected in other states.
The Conshohocken, Pennsylvania-based retailer employs more than 11,000 workers, according to the Wall Street Journal.
David’s Bridal told CNN Business that the company is “evaluating our strategic options and the sale process is ongoing.” It also said all its stores remain open.
“The scale of these layoffs suggests that David’s Bridal is in crisis mode,” said Neil Saunders, managing director of GlobalData Retail. “It indicates that there is a lot of change going on behind the scenes with the goal of saving money as the company prepares for bankruptcy or sale.”
Saunders said he expects the company to close stores as part of its plan.
“The business in its current form is not working and the hope is that a smaller entity will be more financially viable,” he said.
The layoffs come as problems mount for David’s Bridal, which is reportedly filing for bankruptcy for the second time in five years, according to The New York Times, which mentions people who are familiar with the matter. The Times says the retailer may explore a sale as part of its turnaround plan.
David’s Bridal filed for bankruptcy in 2018 after being saddled with mounting debt and declining sales of wedding dresses. It emerged from bankruptcy in 2019 as it continues to try to fix the business.
But a global pandemic in 2020 is not good weddings are ruined as social gatherings come to an abrupt halt. Next year, David’s Bridal, which operates more than 300 stores, said it expects weddings to return with a vengeance because of pent-up demand.
But the layoffs at David’s Bridal come amid ongoing job losses across retail, technology and other industries. Walmart last week said it was laying off more than 2,000 workers at five US warehouses and Best Buy (BBY) Hundreds of store-level jobs have reportedly been cut, according to a Wall Street Journal report on Friday.