At Home Seeks Bankruptcy Protection From ‘Impact of Tariffs’

Home décor chain At Home is shuttering dozens of stores as it seeks bankruptcy protection.

The retailer, which has more than 200 locations throughout the U.S., announced its Chapter 11 filing in a Monday (June 16) news release, citing trade-related pressures.

At Home CEO Brad Weston said in a news release that the company had over the last several months taken measures to strengthen sales growth and optimize inventory management in order to shore up its foundation.

“While we have made significant progress advancing our initiatives to date, we are operating against the backdrop of an increasingly dynamic and rapidly evolving trade environment as we navigate the impact of tariffs,” Weston added.

“The steps we are taking today to fully de-lever our balance sheet will improve our ability to compete in the marketplace in the face of continued volatility and increase the resilience of our business for the long term.”

According to the company’s bankruptcy filing, At Home will close 26 “underperforming” stores, though it did not rule out closing additional locations in the future. The retailer has already closed six stores this year, and anticipates these new closings to be concluded by Sept. 30.

Under the agreement, At Home plans to shift ownership of the company to a group of lenders who hold more than 95% of the chain’s debt.

The bankruptcy announcement follows the closure of two other similar retailers. Last year, discounter Big Lots announced it was declaring bankruptcy and shutting down its 800 stores, though the company was later purchased by a new owner.

Last month, arts and crafts retailer Joann shut down its stores for good after declaring bankruptcy twice in under two years.

Recent research by PYMNTS Intelligence shows the impact tariffs are having on U.S. businesses. For example, 84% of chief financial officers (CFOs) in the good sector say they anticipate shortages or delays in getting products this year.

At the same time, 72% say they expect that to happen in the next three to 12 months, while two-thirds of CFOs expect raw material costs to increase during this period. Under a quarter of these companies believe they will repair their supply chain resilience within a year.

“The timeline to rebuild is long. Among goods firms, 61% say resilience improvements could take up to three years — a period that bumps up the end of President Trump’s second term,” PYMNTS wrote in the report, “The Enterprise Reset: Tariffs, Uncertainty and the Limits of Operational Response.”