Women’s retailer Coldwater Creek Inc. is preparing to file for bankruptcy protection within about a week as it contends with a high debt load, declining sales and broader industry struggles, the Wall Street Journal reported today. Coldwater Creek, known for its catalogs selling a variety of women’s clothes and accessories as well as mall-based retail stores, has struggled for months. Attempts to avoid a bankruptcy filing by refinancing debt or selling itself to a private-equity buyer were ultimately unsuccessful. The company’s post-bankruptcy strategy isn’t clear. Coldwater Creek carries about $353 million in total debt, which includes about $180 million in current liabilities, according to its most recent earnings filing.
