The COVID-19 pandemic has affected countless businesses, both big and small. From layoffs to furloughs and having to shut doors indefinitely, it’s a sad time for numerous companies and employees alike.

One of the hardest hit companies by the outbreak have been retail stores. With customers not being able to shop in store, business has been down significantly. The latest retailer to announce their decline: J.C. Penny.

After 118 years in business, the popular department store announced that they will be filing for bankruptcy. In addition, they will be closing some of their 846 stores around the country (though which locations have not been declared yet).

In the past, J.C. Penny has endured quite the ride of ups and downs, from enduring everything from executive instability and damaging market trends—but they were making progress in their company’s stability before COIVD-19 became a thing.

“Until this pandemic struck, we had made significant progress rebuilding our company under our Plan for Renewal strategy — and our efforts had already begun to pay off,” said CEO Jill Soltau. “Implementing this financial restructuring plan through a court-supervised process is the best path to ensure that JCPenney will build on its over 100-year history to serve our customers for decades to come.”

J.C. Penny is the largest retailer to be affected by the pandemic, but they certainly aren’t the first national retailer to have to file for bankruptcy. At the beginning of May, both J. Crew and Neiman Marcus also filed for bankruptcy, among many others.

To learn more about J.C. Penny’s decision to file (and whether or not you might expect a sale any time soon…), check out the video below.

Are you a fan of J.C. Penny? Can you believe how many retail stores are being affected by the COVID-19 pandemic? What other companies in the industry have you seen get hit?