Coronavirus Impact: Pier 1 Imports to close all stores, cease retail operations

Pier 1 Imports wants to close all its stores for good as it struggles financially during the pandemic.

The furniture chain is on the verge of completely shutting down three months after it filed for bankruptcy protection.

Pier 1 says it's asking the bankruptcy court to cease its retail operations "as soon as reasonably possible."

In February, Pier 1 announced it would close up to 450 stores nationwide.

Orders placed on its website will continue to be fulfilled.

Robert Riesbeck, Pier 1's Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer said, "We are grateful to our dedicated and hardworking associates, millions of customers and committed vendors who have collectively supported Pier 1 for decades. We deeply value our associates, customers, business partners and the communities in which we operate, and this is not the outcome we expected or hoped to achieve. This decision follows months of working to identify a buyer who would continue to operate our business going forward. Unfortunately, the challenging retail environment has been significantly compounded by the profound impact of COVID-19, hindering our ability to secure such a buyer and requiring us to wind down."