Mervyn's - #6
Started by Mervin G. Morris in 1949 in San Lorenzo, California, the company grew to almost 200 stores, mostly in the West. The mid-scale department store grew to the US’s 83rd largest retailer in 2005.
As it expanded outside of California, Mervyn’s ran into trouble. Was it fast growth, merchandising, service or all of the above?
On October 17, 2008, the company announced that it would liquidate its assets through a Chapter 7 filing. All remaining locations were closed by the end of the year despite attempts to reorganize during bankruptcy.
The Morris family, having bought back intellectual property rights to the company in 2009, announced plans to relaunch Mervyn's as an internet-based enterprise. [Wikipedia] The proposed revival came to fruition many years later as Mervyn’s is now an online store that sells overstocks from other retailers.
