Canadian clothing retailer Oak and Fort Corp. has been granted court protection from its creditors under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA) in Canada and plans a parallel Chapter 15 bankruptcy proceeding in the U.S. The Vancouver-based company, which operates 42 stores, owes over $25-million to creditors and blames an ill-conceived store expansion and U.S. tariffs on Chinese-sourced products for its financial crisis.
Retailer Oak and Fort granted creditor protection, blames tariffs for financial crisis
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TL;DR: Key points with love ❤️Canadian clothing retailer Oak and Fort Corp. has been granted court protection from its creditors under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA) in Canada and plans a parallel Chapter 15 bankruptcy proceeding in the U.S. The Vancouver-based company, which operates 42 stores, owes over $25-million to creditors and blames an ill-conceived store expansion and U.S. tariffs on Chinese-sourced products for its financial crisis.
Trending- 1 2010: Oak and Fort founded as e-commerce retailer.
- 2 Past 3 years (since ~2022): Company losing money.
- 3 Post-pandemic: Opened 26 new stores in U.S. and Canada.
- 4 March 26, 2023: Net loss of $1.1-million reported.
- 5 March 24, 2024: Net loss of $10.6-million reported.
- 6 Recent months: U.S. trade war and tariffs intensified difficulties.
- 7 End of May (2025): Missed rent payments.
- 8 Friday (June 7, 2025): Granted initial order under CCAA by Supreme Court of British Columbia in Vancouver.
- 9 Currently: Planning parallel Chapter 15 bankruptcy in the U.S.; seeking financing and restructuring.
- Court protection from creditors
- Parallel Chapter 15 bankruptcy
- Owes over $25-million to creditors
- Missed rent payments
- Threats from landlords
- Net losses ($1.1M in 2023, $10.6M in 2024, $5.1M in most recent fiscal year)
- Squeezed profit margins
- Difficulty refinancing
- Cost cutting (reduced inventory, hurt sales)
- 601 employees (434 in Canada) affected by restructuring
What: Canadian clothing retailer Oak and Fort Corp. was granted court protection from creditors under CCAA and plans Chapter 15 bankruptcy in the U.S. due to financial crisis, owing over $25 million.
When: Initial order granted on Friday (June 7, 2025); missed rent payments end of May; losing money for at least past three years (since ~2022); founded in 2010; post-pandemic expansion; fiscal year ended March 26, 2023; fiscal year ended March 24, 2024; recent months (for tariffs).
Where: Canada (Vancouver-based, 434 employees), U.S. (42 stores total, landlords primarily in U.S., Chapter 15 proceeding, U.S. trade war, sourcing from China); Supreme Court of British Columbia in Vancouver.
Why: Ill-conceived store expansion (26 new stores post-pandemic, revenues not anticipated); U.S. tariffs (increased supply chain/import costs, squeezed profit margins, uncertainty in financial markets, risk-averse lenders, difficulty refinancing); missed rent payments.
How: Granted initial order under CCAA; planning Chapter 15 bankruptcy; engaged Reflect Advisors LLC for restructuring; KSV Restructuring Inc. as court-appointed monitor; cutting costs (reducing inventory, talks with vendors, negotiating lease terms); plans to keep stores and e-commerce running while seeking financing and restructuring.