BUFFALO, NY - Yet another major store chain that may be shutting down. Reuters is reporting that department store chain Bon-Ton will go out of business.
The news outlet cites sources in its report and doesn't say if or when any stores will actually close.
We've been trying to answer some of the questions that shoppers and employees may have. Bon-Ton has eight stores across WNY from Lockport to Jamestown.
Reuters says Bon-Ton will go out of business, after the only bidders to compete in an auction for the department store were liquidators. The news outlet says money from the auction will be used to pay Bon-Ton's creditors. And that this process still has several layers of federal approval to go through.
"Anytime a company is in bankruptcy, proceedings things don't happen overnight and it's a process supervised by a bankruptcy court, and it takes a while for the business to close down," said business analyst, Peter Allen Weinmann.
One of Bon-Ton's locations is at the Eastern Hills Mall in Clarence. Mountain Development Corporation, which is based in New Jersey, co-owns the mall.
"We do know that its been a very successful store for them but I've heard nothing today regarding their location ot its fate," said Chuck Breidenbach, Managing Director of Mountain Development Corp.
"Usually in bankruptcies we learn who the successful bidder is we then find out what the liquidation plan is and the time periods involved," he said.
There are plans to redevelop the mall into a place where people would live, work and shop.
"It actually helps us move forward a little bit quicker than we normally would because its just one more major store that we're not in negotiations with," Breidenbach said when asked about the potential closure.
Bon-Ton has not had any official comment on Reuter's reporting.