Haggen Files Bankruptcy

Haggen (Bellingham, Wash.) filed for bankruptcy and is planning on closing a significant amount of its stores. It has announced that it will be closing 27 stores, though it has not yet revealed which locations are slated for closure.

However, according to financial projections made in court, it seems that the grocery store chain plans to downsize even more considerably, reports The Seattle Times. The documents show the grocer’s weekly sales dropping by about 66 percent from $44 million to $15 million by mid-November and inventory expenses falling from almost $25 million to about $8.6 million by mid-October. Payroll expenses are also expected to decrease sharply by the end of October.

The filing comes after the grocer purchased 146 West Coast stores from Albertsons (Boise, Idaho) and Safeway (Pleasanton, Calif.) last January.