Jamesway

Peter Hollis, former president and CEO of Ames, joined Jamesway in 1991 and was named president in February of that year. In April 1991, in an effort to strengthen its financial position, the company secured a $40 million refinancing agreement and closed 11 unprofitable stores. In January 1993, Jamesway rolled out a new store format and planned to completely remodel the 127-store chain within the following three years. The remodel would include completely redoing 30 stores in 1993. The remodeling efforts included better lighting, store layouts, and signage improvements throughout the store.

In June 1993, Joseph Ettore, most recently chairman of Stuarts, rejoined the company as president and CEO. On July 19, 1993 the company filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Before the filing, the chain had sales of $1.05 billion and 7,400 employees. In August 1993, the discounter said it cut 70 headquarters jobs and implemented a management realignment. "We want to stay in business," Ettore emphasized.

In January 1993, Jamesway closed 13 stores. In December 1993, Jamesway announced it would close 14 stores and remodel 11 stores as part of a plan to pull the company out of bankruptcy.[3] Jamesway closed ten more stores in 1994, leaving the chain with 90 stores remaining. Jamesway faced competition from other large chains such as Ames, Bradlees, Caldor and Hills, which started to open new stores in areas where Jamesway stores were already located. The chain emerged from bankruptcy in January 1995. The company put itself up for sale in May 1995. Ames was viewed as the most likely suitor for the chain. Hills and Caldor were also considered as possible suitors. At the time it put itself up for sale, the company had 5,900 employees. Jamesway filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy for the second time in October 1995 after it had emerged from its nearly two-year-long bankruptcy. Just days before its filing, the company laid off 3% of its workforce.

The company decided it would close all of its remaining stores, and liquidation sales began immediately, running from October to December 1995. It was believed that its continued weak sales, along with operating losses and constricted trade credit, contributed to its bankruptcy.[4] During that time, Wal-Mart had begun to open new stores replacing many Jamesway stores, making Jamesway's fate inescapable. Ames purchased 11 former Jamesway stores and reopened them as Ames stores,[5] and Joseph Ettore would eventually become the new president of Ames, but Ames declared bankruptcy in 2001 with a similar reason to Jamesway's, and eventually closed all of its stores a year later.