Troubled teen retailer Wet Seal LLC is closing all of its stores after it was unable to nail down fresh capital or a buyer, the Wall Street Journal reported today. In a letter dated Jan. 20, the retailer notified employees in its Irvine, Calif., headquarters that the office would be permanently closed and all of the workers would lose their jobs. “Unfortunately, the company was unable to obtain the necessary capital or identify a strategic partner, and was recently informed that it will receive no further financing for its operations,” Vice President and General Counsel Michelle Stocker wrote in the letter. There are 148 employees in the company’s headquarters, according to a public notice of the layoffs. Wet Seal’s website says the chain has 171 stores in 42 states. Wet Seal previously filed for bankruptcy protection in January 2015. Versa later acquired the company out of chapter 11 for $7.5 million in cash, and at the time, promised to keep at least 140 stores open.
