We’re never going to be able to predict the future of our economy when it’s always changing. The thrill, the surprise, it’s all there, just not our answers. These businesses I’m about to share with could be shocking because of their success in the past, but in the economy “everything that comes up, must come down.”
- Build-A-Bear
Build-A-Bear was first created to create your own personal stuffed animal that you can customize. In the 26 years they have been around Build-A-Bear have taken over the stuffed animal market. Now with so many competitors, they are facing a financial block. “Inventory at year-end was $63.5 million, reflecting a decline of $7.0 million, or 9.9% from January 28, 2023. The Company remains comfortable with the level and composition of its inventory.” According to businesswire.com/news/home/20240314549003/en/. As of right now Build -A-Bear has temporarily closed all of its stores and discharged over 90% of all of their employees saying they’re recovering from the pandemic, but that is up in the air.
- Rue 21.
Rue 21 has already filed for bankruptcy 2 times once in 2002 and another in 2017. Recently they just filed for it again. With 450 locations and 4,900 employees, they’re already 194.4 million dollars in debt. Owners are rapidly selling stock in desperate hopes of conserving the damage. The company has also tried selling the company to any buyers who are willing to pay more than what they can sell all the assets for, but they haven’t found any who are taking the bait.
- Chewy Inc.
Chewy Inc’s profits skyrocketed during the COVID-19 pandemic earning 8-9 billion just that year according to “companies market cap” with many pet owners and bored pets “locked in”. It was easy to get consumers to order their pet supplies online instead of in person. Now that it is safe to go to stores again, Chewy Inc. S stock trades are down 85% from their all-time high in 2020-2021. Many customers are going in person to purchase their pet’s food and toys. The CEO, Sumit Singh has even started selling portions of his stock to buyers at cheap costs. This could be a sign that he has already started losing more money than he is letting on.
Work cited…
https://www.macroaxis.com/invest/ratio/BBW/Probability-Of-Bankruptcy,
https://www.wzzm13.com/article/news/nation-world/rue21-
https://finance.yahoo.com/
https://selbys.net/blog/retail-stores-2030/
https://www.marketwatch.com/investing/stock/chwy
https://financebuzz.com/
