Family Christian to Close Batavia Location, All Stores Nationwide

Family Christian has announced it will close all of its 240 stores nationwide, including nine locations in the Chicago suburbs.

The closures will include the store in Batavia at 135 N. Randall Road. Other suburban locations that will close include Family Christian stores in Vernon Hills, Naperville, Orland Park, Lombard, Joliet, South Holland, Matteson and Algonquin.

Family Christian touts itself as the largest non-profit Christian retailer and sells books, bibles, movies, gifts and church supplies. The store is currently advertising up to 30 percent off all goods.

The non-profit company, which has been in business for 85 years, faced declining sales after filing for bankruptcy protection in 2015 and was forced to shut down, USA Today reports.

“Despite improvements in product assortment and the store experience, sales continued to decline," said Chuck Bengochea, the company's president. "In addition, we were not able to get the pricing and terms we needed from our vendors to successfully compete in the market.”

The company has not yet announced closing dates for its stores, according to USA Today.

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