National + Retail | December 5, 2018

Gymboree Plans Store Closings Under Strategic Review

Children’s apparel retailer Gymboree Group, which emerged from bankruptcy protection this past spring, may close up to half its 900 stores under a strategic review process the company has announced. The San Francisco-based company plans to shutter all its Crazy 8 locations in 2019, and will significantly reduce the store counts of its Gymboree and Janie and Jack brands.

The review process could yield a sale or other transactions at the brand level, the company said. However, Gymboree Group said the review wasn’t guaranteed to result in a sale or other strategic alternative.

“These strategic initiatives are an important next step as we continue to look for ways to unlock additional value in our brands,” said Shaz Kahng, a turnaround specialist who was named Gymboree’s CEO in November. “We are optimistic about our future as a more streamlined organization that can deliver enhanced, long-term value to its stakeholders.”

Stifel and Berkeley Research Group are serving as Gymboree’s financial advisors. Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP is serving as its legal counsel.

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About Paul Bubny

Paul Bubny serves as Senior Content Director for Connect Commercial Real Estate, a role to which he brings 13-plus years’ experience covering the commercial real estate industry and 30-plus years in business-to-business journalism. In this capacity, he oversees daily operations while also reporting on both local/regional markets and national trends, covering individual transactions across all property types, as well as delving into broader subject matter. He produces 15-20 daily news stories per day and works with the Connect team and clients to develop longer-form content, ranging from Q&As to thought-leadership pieces. Prior to joining Connect, Paul was Managing Editor for both Real Estate Forum and GlobeSt.com at American Lawyer Media, where he oversaw operations at both publications while also producing daily news and feature-length articles. His tenure in B2B publishing stretches back into the print era, and he has served as Editor in Chief on four national trade publications. Since 1999, Paul has volunteered as the newsletter editor of passenger rail advocacy groups (one national, one local).

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