Bebe To Close All Calif. Stores By End Of May

The clothing chain Bebe, which caters to younger women, will close all of its stores by the end of May, according to documents the company filed Thursday with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Bebe Stores Inc. is based in Brisbane, California, and has 180 locations in the United States and Canada.

Earlier in the month, the chain had filed paperwork noting it planned to close only 21 stores, which represented roughly 12 percent of its total outlets. CNBC reports Bebe was trying to reorganize and considering a move to online-only sales. Net sales at Bebe fell 13.5 percent in the first six months of its current fiscal year, which ended Dec. 31. It recorded a net loss of $13 million over that same period.

Bebe has not commented on the closure, and there was no mention of it on the company's website Friday morning.

There are 32 stores in California:

• Santa Clara: Valley Fair
• San Francisco: San Francisco Centre
• Sacramento: Arden Fair Mall
• Sherman Oaks: Sherman Oaks Fashion Square
• Brea: Brea
• Newport Beach: Newport Fashion Island
• Canoga Park: Topanga Plaza
• Santa Ana: Main Place
• San Mateo Hillsdale Mall
• Los Angeles: Beverly Center
• Arcadia: Santa Anita Fashion Park
• La Jolla: University Towne Center
• San Diego: Horton Plaza
• San Diego: Fashion Valley
• Mission Viejo: Mission Viejo
• Pleasanton: Stoneridge Mall
• Roseville: Roseville Galleria
• Cerritos: Los Cerritos Center
• Rancho Cucamonga: Victoria Gardens
• Irvine: Irvine Spectrum Center
• Fresno: Fresno Fashion Fair
• El Segundo: El Segundo
• Torrance: Del Amo Fashion Center
• Emeryville: Bay Street
• Modesto: Vintage Faire Mall
• Milpitas: Great Mall of the Bay Area Outlet
• Ontario: Ontario Mills Outlet
• Camarillo: Camarillo Outlet
• Cabazon: Desert Hills Outlet
• Folsom: Folsom Outlet
• San Diego: Shops at Las Americas Outlet
• Livermore: San Francisco Premium Outlets

Find a list of all Bebe stores here.

In its SEC filing the company said it will pay a consultant $500,000 to sell the chain's inventory, and it will pay an impairment charge of about $20 million, net of deferred rent and other credits, by closing the stores. This impairment charge will be recorded in the third and fourth quarters of this year, according to the SEC filing.

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