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Neiman Marcus Group is set to file for bankruptcy as soon as this week, Reuters reports, citing people familiar with the matter.
Why it matters: It would be the first major department store chain to fall victim to the coronavirus economy. Neiman Marcus is also an anchor tenant to many shopping malls that were already struggling before the coronavirus pandemic.
- Social distancing restrictions have forced the company to temporarily shutter its 43 Neiman Marcus locations, about two dozen Last Call stores and its two Bergdorf Goodman stores.
- The group has furloughed most of its roughly 14,000 employees. It's also fallen behind on debt payments, having "skipped millions of dollars in debt payments last week, including one that only gave the company a few days to avoid a default," Reuters notes.
What to watch: The company is in the final stages of negotiating a loan totaling hundreds of millions of dollars to continue its operations during bankruptcy proceedings, according to Reuters.