Luxe L.A. Label Bldwn Shutters Melrose Place Store, Files for Bankruptcy

It rebranded last year.

After relocating from Kansas City to Los Angeles as part of its relaunch efforts, contemporary-cool label Bldwn has shuttered. The company is expected to file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy as a result of financial pressures stemming from coronavirus business closures, reports Women's Wear Daily.

Bldwn's former PR firm confirmed to us that the brand "closed its doors" in March, and the label's website notes that the company is "sorry to announce that we are no longer able to take any new orders or returns." The label opened its first L.A. boutique in 2018 on Melrose Avenue, then relocated to a 1,100-square-foot space on Melrose Place last year when it rebranded under the helm of president and creative director (and former AG Jeans executive) Jonathan Crocker. As WWD reported, Crocker stepped down last October and a replacement was not named.

Per the fashion industry trade publication, "it's very possible the brand was having issues before such an unprecedented event… The brand has yet to formally file and the chapter it chooses could change."

L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti recently announced that non-essential stores such as clothing boutiques can re-open May 8 for curbside pick-up, but many local businesses have fallen too deep in the red to recover from the significant loss of revenue brought on by the pandemic and "Safer at Home" orders issued in March by California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Garcetti.

New York-based J. Crew and L.A.-based True Religion are among the fashion brands that have filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, according to Fast Company. Bldwn clearly isn't the first to go down and sadly, it won't be the last — but now that L.A. County has given the official OK for stores to partially reopen, le's cross our fingers that local businesses will find a lifeline in the boost in sales.

Read the full story on Bldwn's closure over at WWD here.

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