Gymboree filed for bankruptcy twice in 18 months and closed all its stores

Gymboree was founded in 1976 by Joan Barnes as a parent-child play program, and opened its first children's clothing stores under the Gymboree name in 1986. It grew into a major mall-based specialty retailer with over 1,000 stores across multiple brands: Gymboree, Gymboree Outlet, Janie & Jack (higher-end children's clothing), and Crazy 8 (value-priced). The chain was known for brightly colored, durable children's clothing.

In 2010, Bain Capital acquired Gymboree for $1.8 billion in a leveraged buyout that loaded the company with significant debt. The LBO came just as the retail landscape was shifting: online shopping was growing, mall traffic was declining, and fast-fashion competitors like H&M and Zara were taking market share. Gymboree's debt service costs consumed cash that would otherwise have gone to store investment and e-commerce development.

Gymboree filed for Chapter 11 in June 2017, closing more than 375 stores. The company emerged from bankruptcy in September 2017 after restructuring its debt, but the relief was short-lived. The second bankruptcy came on January 17, 2019. This time, the company announced the closure of all its Gymboree, Gymboree Outlet, and Crazy 8 brick-and-mortar stores — nearly 800 locations. Janie & Jack was sold to Gap Inc.

On June 24, 2019, The Children's Place acquired the assets of Gymboree and Crazy 8 for an undisclosed sum and relaunched Gymboree as a digital-first sub-brand with store-within-a-store locations. The 900+ physical stores that had defined Gymboree for three decades were gone. The case represents one of the fastest retail flame-outs following a private-equity buyout — the company went from a $1.8 billion acquisition to complete liquidation in nine years.