Reports: Forman Mills Avoids Bankruptcy with Sale to Shoppers World

Discount retailer Forman Mills, which had been warning of a potential bankruptcy, has been purchased by Shoppers World, according to reporting in The Philadelphia Inquirer. A request for comment from Shoppers World had not been received as of press time.

Forman Mills had recently posted a WARN notice that it would be laying off 245 workers in seven stores in Pennsylvania by Aug. 4, 2023. One store, in Philadelphia, already had closed, and the impending layoffs indicated that others were in danger of shuttering.

Forman Mills, which had been acquired by private equity firm Goode Partners in 2016, currently operates 43 stores in Pennsylvania, Maryland, New Jersey, Illinois, Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, Delaware and New York. Shoppers World operates 37 stores, primarily in the Northeast and Midwest. Both the Inquirer and the Philadelphia Business Journal report that Shoppers World plans to keep all the Forman Mills stores open, and even plans to reopen a recently closed Philadelphia store.