Dressbarn To Close Bel Air Stores As Company Shutters Nationwide

BEL AIR, MD — Dressbarn will close its 650 stores nationwide, including in Bel Air. The company has not disclosed when stores will shutter.

For now, Dressbarn stores remain open and are conducting business as usual, according to a statement from the company.

Shoppers may continue making purchases in stores and online, and there have been no changes to the return, refund or gift card policies, officials said.

Dressbarn announced this week that it would be "winding down" its operations with this message:

It has been our pleasure to serve you, making it all the more difficult to let you know that the decision has been made to begin winding down the Dressbarn business. This means that we will eventually be closing all of our stores.

Dressbarn CFO Steven Taylor called the decision "difficult but necessary" as the stores had "not been operating at an acceptable level of profitability in today's retail environment."

The first Dressbarn opened in 1962 and was the brainchild of Roslyn Jaffe, who saw a need for a store that catered to working women looking to pair fashion with value. She and her husband, Elliott Jaffe, founded the company, with the first store in Stamford, Connecticut.

At the time, their goal was to open 10 stores. Now there about 650 nationwide, including 22 in Maryland. Two are in Bel Air, and the next nearest store is in White Marsh.

"During the wind down process, we will continue to provide our customers with the same great experience both in-store and online, offering them even better deals and value," Taylor said in a statement.

The company employs approximately 6,800 workers, and Taylor said they would be provided with transitional assistance.

"We will work to assist our associates through the transition and maintain existing relationships with our vendors, suppliers, and other key stakeholders through this process," Taylor said. "For more than 50 years, Dressbarn has served women's fashion needs, and we thank all of our dedicated associates for their commitment to Dressbarn and our valued customers."

Dressbarn is at the Festival at Bel Air, 5 Bel Air South Parkway. It has two locations at the shopping center: Dressbarn and Dressbarn Woman (sizes 14-24). They are located near A.C. Moore and Marshalls.