Retail

Brooks Brothers Goes Bust With Business Clothes Losing Favor

  • Pandemic keeps customers home, cutting demand for suits
  • The company dressed presidents including Abraham Lincoln
Retail Reckoning Is Just Getting Started, SW President Widlitz Warns

Brooks Brothers Group Inc. filed for bankruptcy, felled by the pandemic’s impact on clothing sales and its own heavy debt load.

The two-century-old apparel company is the latest to succumb as lockdowns during the coronavirus outbreak add to the woes of old-line retailers. Neiman Marcus Group Inc., J. Crew Group Inc. and John Varvatos Enterprises Inc. each filed for bankruptcy since the virus took hold.