Rite Aid, Party City and other notable retail bankruptcy cases in 2025

Major retail bankruptcies continued in 2025.

For some, like Rite Aid, a second bankruptcy marked an end. For others, like At Home, it provided the chance to reorganize and stay in business.

Here are eight of the most notable bankruptcy cases for major retail chains this year:

The home décor chain filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in May. At Home said in a bankruptcy filing that it has been facing numerous challenges, including a challenging commercial environment, inflation, and concerns over unsustainable customs costs resulting from increased tariffs, as well as reduced foot traffic in stores and heightened competition.

The retailer entered into a restructuring support agreement with its lenders, which hold more than 95% of the company’s debt. The retailer said that the prearranged financial restructuring would eliminate substantially all of the company’s nearly $2 billion in funded debt.

Following the restructuring, At Home transitioned ownership of the company to its lenders, supporting the agreement, including funds affiliated with Redwood Capital Management LLC, Farallon Capital Management L.L.C., and Anchorage Capital Advisors L.P.

At Home exited bankruptcy in October with 229 stores.

Big Lots! filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in September 2024. On Dec. 19, 2024, Big Lots announced that going-out-of-business sales would begin at all of its 909 remaining stores, including 64 locations in Pennsylvania. Variety Wholesalers later reopened 219 Big Lots! stores. On Nov. 10, 2025, the Big Lots! Chapter 11 cases were converted to Chapter 7.

In June, Claire’s Holdings LLC said it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy to maximize the value of its business. The company said the proceedings would allow it to commence the monetization process for its assets to maximize value for the business, while continuing an active and comprehensive review of strategic alternatives, including discussions with potential strategic partners.

Claire’s Holdings announced in August that it has entered into an agreement with an affiliate of Ames Watson, a private holding company that purchases, transforms and partners with companies to create long term value, for Ames Watson to acquire Claire’s business operations in North America. As part of that agreement, Claire’s paused the liquidation process at a significant number of stores. For its other stores in North America, the process continued.

Forever 21 didn’t last. The retailer filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy for a second time in March. At the time, Forever 21 had 17 stores in Pennsylvania, including a location at the Capital City Mall in Lower Allen Township, near Camp Hill. The company closed all of its 354 U.S. stores earlier this year.

JoAnn, known for years as JoAnn Fabrics, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy for a second time in January. The chain later closed all of its 800 stores. JoAnn had stores in every state but one. As of March 2024, the retailer had 42 stores in Pennsylvania, including locations in Lemoyne and Lower Paxton Township, outside of Harrisburg. In June, The Michaels Companies acquired JoAnn’s intellectual property and private label brands.

The party ended this year for the retailer. Party City filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, for a second time, in 2024. In December 2024, it announced it was closing all of its stores. At that time, the retailer had 25 stores in Pennsylvania, including locations in Silver Spring Township, outside of Mechanicsburg, and Lower Paxton Township, near Harrisburg. The retailer closed its more than 700 stores earlier this year.

It was one of the most prominent companies that ever called south-central Pennsylvania home, and now it’s just a memory. The last two Rite Aid pharmacies closed on Sept. 29 in Bainbridge Island, Washington, and in Bend, Oregon. In May, the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy for a second time.

Just 10 years ago, the company had more than 4,600 stores. Rite Aid sold 1,932 of those stores to Walgreens in 2017 after the two companies failed to merge. The company closed more than 800 stores during its first bankruptcy, which ended in 2024. By the time it filed for bankruptcy a second time, it had more than 1,200 stores. At one time, the company had more than 400 stores in the Keystone State.

Rite Aid was previously based in East Pennsboro Township, outside of Camp Hill, for decades before moving to Philadelphia in 2022.

The company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on December 22, 2024, and announced it would implement a recapitalization transaction to bolster its financial position, fuel growth initiatives, and drive enhanced long-term profitability.

One month later, The Container Store Group completed its financial restructuring process and emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The company has more than 100 locations nationwide.