NEW YORK — Women’s fashion retailer BCBG Max Azria has filed for bankruptcy protection, a move that will see it shutter its 51 locations in Canada.
The company has stores in the Bay Centre in downtown Victoria and Uptown Shopping Centre in Saanich.
According to court documents, the high-end clothing chain known for cocktail and formal dresses is seeking protection from creditors under Chapter 11 of the U.S. bankruptcy code and Canada’s Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act.
The company says it’s still looking at “exploring alternatives” to closing down its presence inside Hudson’s Bay department stores in Canada.
In early 2017, BCBG began closing 120 of its 550 locations worldwide as part of an effort to downsize its physical stores presence.
It blamed lagging sales in recent years to a “general shift away from brick-and-mortar to online retail channels,” a trend it says has negatively affected many similar retailers.
BCBG was founded in 1989 in Los Angeles and employs 4,800 workers.
Retailers in Canada that have either filed for bankruptcy or closed in the past few years include Jacob, Bikini Village, Danier Leather, Smart Set and Mexx Canada.
