Gymboree

Gymboree Group, Inc. was an American corporation that operated a chain of over 1,200 specialty retail stores of children's apparel in the United States (including Puerto Rico) and Canada. Bain Capital acquired the company in 2010. Gymboree filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in June 2017 and emerged from bankruptcy in September 2017. The company was then owned by a group of its original lenders.[5] In January 2019, the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy for the second time in three years, announcing plans to shut down all Gymboree and Crazy 8 retail locations and sell off the Janie & Jack brand. Gymboree relaunched in February 2020, online and at select Children's Place stores.

Gymboree Group, Inc.
Private
IndustryRetail (original), eCommerce
FateChapter 11 bankruptcy
Founded1976 (1976)
DefunctJanuary 17, 2019 (2019-01-17) (original)
Headquarters71 Stevenson St. #2200
San Francisco, California, U.S.
Number of locations
Gymboree: 945 (2019)[1]
1,281 (2017)[2]
Key people
Shaz Kahng (CEO)[3]
ProductsChildren's clothes & Toys
RevenueUS$1.16 billion (FY2017)[4]
US$-372.8 million (FY2017)[4]
US$-264.1 million (FY2017)[4]
Total assetsUS$755.5 billion (FY2017)[4]
Total equityUS$-609.2 million (FY2017)[4]
Number of employees
11,000 (Jan. 2019)[1]
ParentThe Children's Place
WebsiteArchived official website at the Wayback Machine (archive index)

History

Gymboree was founded by Joan Barnes in 1976.[6]

Retail stores

In 1986, the company opened a chain of clothing stores named Gymboree. Gymboree stores offered coordinating children's clothing. The sizes ranged from newborn to size ten. Gymboree, in its current incarnation (it has reorganized several times), is incorporated under the Gym-Mark, Inc. nameplate. In January 2019, it operated 380 Gymboree stores, 154 Gymboree outlets, 147 Janie & Jack stores, 253 Crazy 8 stores, and 11 Crazy 8 outlets in the U.S. and Canada.[1]

Gymboree store in Toronto

Crazy 8 was started in August 2007. It featured lower-priced clothing and was Gymboree's direct competitor for The Children's Place and Old Navy.

In 2010, Bain Capital acquired the company for US$1.8 billion.[7]

In June 2017, Gymboree announced it was filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. As part of the debt management process, it said it would close 375 of its 1,300 stores.[8] In September 2017, the company emerged from bankruptcy.[9] In 2017, the company closed 350 of its 1,281 stores.[2]

In November 2018, it was reported that Gymboree would file for bankruptcy for the second time in 14 months, and as a result, Gymboree announced plans to discontinue the Crazy 8 brand and close all Crazy 8 stores after the holiday season.[10]

On January 17, 2019, Gymboree filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, closing all Gymboree, Gymboree Outlet, and Crazy 8 stores as a result. The company sold its Janie & Jack stores to Gap, Inc.[11]

Play & Music Centers
Gymboree Play & Music in London

In July 2016, The Gymboree Corporation sold the Gymboree Play & Music business to Zeavion Holding, a private company with a focus on the education and entertainment sectors. Gymboree Play & Music is now completely separate from the Gymboree Corporation and is operating parent-child play classes for ages 0–5. Play & Music operates in over 40 countries and has more than 733 centers internationally.[12] Gymboree Play and Music centers are not affected by the Gymboree stores closing.

Relaunch

On June 24, 2019, the Gymboree assets were sold to The Children's Place, who announced that Gymboree would relaunch as an online retailer and would also feature a store-within-a-store concept at The Children's Place stores.[13] It was announced on January 30, 2020, that The Children's Place would relaunch Gymboree in February that year, featuring an "early access" program that will allow early access to the first 10,000 customers who register a spot.[14]

Lawsuits

In November 2005, Gymboree settled a lawsuit relating to overtime compensation in Riverside, California for $2.3 million. The lawsuit alleged that Gymboree did not pay some mandatory overtime or provide required meal breaks.[15]

References
  1. "Gymboree's second bankcruptcy will kill the brand". Retrieved September 22, 2019.
  2. http://finance.yahoo.com/news/gymboree-closing-350-stores-heres-151841580.html. Retrieved September 22, 2019.
  3. http://bloomberg.com/profile/person/4623683. Retrieved September 22, 2019.
  4. http://sec.gov/cgi-bin/browse-edgar?CIK=0000786110&action=getcompany. Retrieved September 23, 2019.
  5. Newswires, Dow Jones. "Gymboree files for bankruptcy, will close 375 stores in chapter 11 restructuring – The Denver Post". Retrieved June 12, 2017.
  6. http://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/gymboree-corporation-history/. Retrieved September 23, 2019.
  7. http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2010/10/11/bain-buys-gymboree-for-1-8-billion/. Retrieved September 23, 2019.
  8. Fu, Lisa. "Gymboree Will Close More Than 375 Stores After Filing for Bankruptcy". Fortune. Retrieved June 12, 2017.
  9. "Gymboree emerges from bankruptcy". Chain Store Age. September 29, 2017. Retrieved December 6, 2018.
  10. "Gymboree to close Crazy 8 stores and cut back namesake stores; names CEO". Chain Store Age. December 5, 2018. Retrieved December 6, 2018.
  11. "SF-based Gymboree plans to shut down after second bankruptcy filing". San Francisco Chronicle. January 17, 2019.
  12. "Gymboree Agrees To Sell Play & Music Business To ZEAVION". www.prnewswire.com (press release). Retrieved January 3, 2018.
  13. Gymboree (June 24, 2019). "Help us bring back the Gymboree you loved!". Twitter. Retrieved November 27, 2019.
  14. Wilson, Marianne (January 30, 2020). "Gymboree makes its retail comeback". Chain Store Age.
  15. "Gymboree settles overtime suit for $2.3M". San Francisco Business Times. November 21, 2005. Retrieved April 3, 2012.
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