Christmas Tree Shops, the discount home-goods chain spun out by Bed Bath & Beyond in 2020, is preparing to file for bankruptcy as early as this weekend, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. The Middleboro, Mass.-based chain of roughly 80 bricks-and-mortar stores recently hired Boston-based law firm Murphy & King to prepare a potential chapter 11 filing. The chain was acquired from Bed Bath & Beyond by Handil Holdings, owned by entrepreneurs Marc Salkovitz and Pam Salkovitz. They embarked on a plan to rebrand the stores as CTS to increase awareness of the breadth of its offerings beyond Christmas items. Mr. Salkovitz told the Wall Street Journal in 2021 that the name of the chain led many customers to believe that the stores only sell Christmas-related items. Christmas Tree Shops could follow its former parent into bankruptcy. Bed Bath & Beyond filed for chapter 11 in April after years of losses and failed turnaround plans left the home-goods chain short of cash.
