The retail apocalypse has claimed another victim.

One of the country's largest department store companies, Bon-Ton Stores Inc., plans to liquidate all 256 of its stores, which include Bon-Ton, Bergner's, Boston Store, Carson's, Elder-Beerman, Herberger's and Younkers.

A bankruptcy court judge approved the liquidation Wednesday.

The Bon-Ton Stores, a chain of department stores that trace its origins to 1854, applied for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in February but failed to find a buyer.

Bon-Ton has stores in 23 states and about 23,000 part-and full-time employees, according to its bankruptcy filing from February 4.

Lawyers for Bon-Ton did not respond to messages from CNNMoney. But the company, in its February court filing, blamed e-commerce as a prime culprit leading to its downfall.

"Bon-Ton, with a significant geographic operating footprint and operating presence, is dependent on store traffic, which has decreased as customers shift increasingly toward online retailers," said the company.

In addition to e-commerce, the company said it's also getting squeezed by anchor store competitors like JCPenney (JCP), Kohl's (KSS) and Macy's (M).

Related: Moody's says retail sector defaults hit record high

Bon-Ton is not alone. While Amazon (AMZN) is thriving, and has even expanded into physical stores, some brick-and-mortar giants are struggling.

Toys "R" Us filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy last year and is liquidating and closing its 735 stores in the US. Sears (SHLD) has lost billions of dollars since 2010.

The retail industry is struggling through intense financial stress.

Moody's said in a report earlier this month that retail sector defaults hit a record high during the first three months of 2018. The rise of e-commerce and the downfall of malls is largely to blame.</s>After years of struggle with decreasing sales and mall traffic, Bon-Ton Stores is going out of business. All of the chain’s brick-and-mortar stores are scheduled to close by the end of August, Chain Store Age reported.

Bon-Ton going-out-of-business sales will commence today (April 20) across 212 brick-and-mortar stores and its websites. Though the retailer has 250 locations, 38 of those stores are already in liquidation. Still, Bon-Ton said its eCommerce and mobile platforms will continue to operate as its stores are liquidated.

The news comes as Bon-Ton said in February that it voluntarily filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in Delaware and was exploring a sale, Fortune reported.

Before that announcement, Bon-Ton had said it would shutter 40 of its 260 brick-and-mortar stores across its various brands. The retailer said in a filing earlier this year that it might have to file for Chapter 11 if it could not reach a deal with creditors. With bankruptcy protection, Bon-Ton gained the ability to break its losses and close stores at a faster clip. To keep its operations going during the bankruptcy court process, the retailer said it had lined up $725 million in debtor-in-possession financing.

“During this court-supervised process, we plan to continue operating in the normal course and executing on our key initiatives to drive improved performance,” Bon-Ton CEO Bill Tracy had said. The company was also exploring a possible sale and was considering dividing itself into smaller units.

Bon-Ton, a Milwaukee-based retailer, includes its eponymous stores in addition to Carson’s, Elder-Beerman, Herberger’s and Younkers. It was challenged by selling a similar assortment of merchandise as its rivals and struggled adapting to eCommerce.

The retailer’s bankruptcy comes on the heels of news that several big-box chains sought bankruptcy in 2017, including Toys R Us. In September, the toy retailer also filed for Chapter 11 protection and hoped to begin a restructuring process that would allow a revamp to its long-term debt — nearly $5 billion.</s>The Bon-Ton Stores (York, Pa.) will begin winding down operations to liquidate and close stores after failing to find a bidder to keep stores open. The company operates about 250 stores under its Bon-Ton, Bergner’s, Boston Store, Carson’s, Elder-Beerman, Herberger’s and Younkers banners.

In the wake of its bankruptcy, the company held an auction this week for its assets. While the company had hoped to find a buyer willing to keep stores open, the winning bid came from a group of liquidators. The liquidators that won the auction are Great American Group (Los Angeles) and Tiger Capital Group (New York).

Details were not available as to when the going-out-of-business sales would commence, but most of the sales are expected to last about 10 to 12 weeks, according to Women’s Wear Daily.</s>The Bon-Ton Stores is preparing to liquidate its assets. Charles Krupa / AP Images

The Bon-Ton Stores is on its way out.

Just two months after it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, the assets of the 100-year old department store chain — which owns multiple store brands including Bon-Ton, Bergner's, Boston Store, Carson's, Elder-Beerman, Herberger's and Younkers — were purchased by two liquidation firms on Tuesday.

In a bankruptcy court filing on Wednesday, lawyers for the company outlined which of its stores would be liquidated. There are 212 locations across Bon-Ton's brands on the list. According to the filing, all stores will close by August 31, and going-out-of-business sales are expected to begin imminently.

The company was operating 260 stores when it filed for bankruptcy in February. It had already been conducting clearance sales at 42 of its least successful stores, which are expected to close by the end of the month, according to USA Today.

Bon-Ton did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment on the store closures but announced in a press release Wednesday that the liquidation firms' bid had been approved by the US Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.

CEO Bill Tracy addressed the bankruptcy auction in a statement on Tuesday:

Here is the full list of stores from the bankruptcy court filing:</s>The Bon-Ton Stores is preparing to liquidate its assets. Charles Krupa / AP Images
• The Bon-Ton Stores is preparing to wind down its business after two liquidation firms — Great American Group and Tiger Capital Group — won a bankruptcy auction for the department store's assets on Tuesday.
• In a bankruptcy filing on Wednesday, the company detailed the addresses of the stores that would be closing.
• 212 stores across the company's brands are included on the list.

The Bon-Ton Stores is on its way out.

Just two months after it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, the assets of the 100-year old department store chain — which owns multiple store brands including Bon-Ton, Bergner's, Boston Store, Carson's, Elder-Beerman, Herberger's and Younkers — were purchased by two liquidation firms on Tuesday.

In a bankruptcy court filing on Wednesday, lawyers for the company outlined which of its stores would be liquidated. There are 212 locations across Bon-Ton's brands on the list. According to the filing, all stores will close by August 31, and going-out-of-business sales are expected to begin imminently.

The company was operating 260 stores when it filed for bankruptcy in February. It had already been conducting clearance sales at 42 of its least successful stores, which are expected to close by the end of the month, according to USA Today.

Bon-Ton did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment on the store closures but announced in a press release Wednesday that the liquidation firms' bid had been approved by the US Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.

CEO Bill Tracy addressed the bankruptcy auction in a statement on Tuesday:

Here is the full list of stores from the bankruptcy court filing:</s>Going-out-of-business sales for Boston Store, Younkers and other Bon-Ton Stores department stores will begin Friday.

The group of liquidators and creditors who bought Bon-Ton out of bankruptcy for almost $800 million in an auction that ended Tuesday and was approved by a judge Wednesday are wasting no time in winding down the retailer.

The company-ending sales are expected to last 10 to 12 weeks. All stores are to be closed no later than Aug. 31, according to a court document.

The liquidation list has 212 stores, including furniture galleries. In addition to Boston Store and Younkers, Bon-Ton operates department stores in the U.S. under the brand names Bergner's, Bon-Ton, Carson's, Elder-Beerman and Herberger's.

The stores bought in the bankruptcy auction are separate from a group of 42 weak-performing stores that the company started closing this winter and are slated to be shut down by the end of April.

Bon-Ton's co-headquarters office in downtown Milwaukee has more than 700 employees. The company employs about 2,255 workers in total in the state. Nationally, it has more than 20,000 employees.

Although the company had sought a buyer that would keep Bon-Ton in business, only two bids that planned to liquidate the retailer were received in an auction in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware.

More: Do you have a Bon-Ton gift card? Use it now, experts say

More: Bidding to buy Bon-Ton retail chains out of bankruptcy comes Monday

More: End of Bon-Ton? Only two bids for parent of Boston Store, Younkers come from liquidators

A joint bid by Tiger Capital Group, a unit of liquidator Great American Group and a group of Bon-Ton debt-holders won, putting the retail chain on the clock.

A sign in the Milwaukee Grand Avenue Boston Store Thursday said Your Rewards, LoveStyle Rewards and all other coupons aren't valid for the store-closing sale. In addition, there will be no adjustments on previously purchased merchandise. Rewards cards and coupons may be redeemed online, the sign stated.</s>The Bon-Ton Stores announced going out of business sales will begin on Friday, April 20, in 212 stores and e-commerce stores they operate, after its liquidation plan was approved by a judge Wednesday.The sales will be for stores and websites under the Bon-Ton, Bergner's, Boston Store, Carson's, Elder-Beerman, Herberger's and Younkers nameplates.A complete store listing, including locations in Illinois and Indiana, can be found at stores.bonton.com The liquidation sales are expected to run 10 to 12 weeks. Bon-Ton has a total of 250 stores, but 38 of them had already announced they were closing, and held going out of business sales, previously.The company announced they were closing four Carson's locations in the Chicago area in January.The Bon-Ton Stores part of a larger group of retailers falling on hard times, facing bankruptcy and store closings. Toys R Us is also currently shutting its U.S. business.</s>Liquidation sales start Friday at stores owned by The Bon-Ton department store chain, including six Herberger’s stores in Montana.

Bon-Ton, which purchased Herberger’s in 2005, filed for bankruptcy in January. A bankruptcy judge on Wednesday approved the sale of the company and its 250 department stores to liquidators.

Herberger’s has anchor stores at malls in Billings, Butte, Great Falls, Havre, Kalispell and Missoula.

Officials say the sales could last 10 to 12 weeks.

Other brands owned by The Bon-Ton include Bon-Ton, Bergner’s Boston Store, Carson’s, Elder-Beerman and Younkers.</s>(Reuters) - Bon-Ton Stores Inc won court approval on Wednesday for a bid to wind down its operations, clearing the way for one of the largest U.S. department store chains to begin selling everything from its store inventory to leases and fixtures.

With the disappearance of Bon-Ton, analysts said rivals such as Macy’s Inc, J.C. Penney Co Inc and Kohls Corp will compete to keep longtime customers from turning to discounters like Walmart Inc or online stalwart Amazon.com Inc.

“Now Macy’s and J.C. Penny will be the primary beneficiaries of Bon-Ton’s bankruptcy, and Stein Mart Inc will be able to get great leases at rock bottom low prices,” said Burt Flickinger, managing director at retail consultancy Strategic Resource Group. “Ironically, Sears Holdings Corp, which to its credit has done a very good job in the last three to four quarters on soft lines and clothes and apparel, will benefit greatly, too.”

Dozens of traditional brick-and-mortar retailers have been forced to shutter stores and file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy as they rethink their businesses in the face of rising online competition. As many end in liquidation, others such as J.C. Penney are trying to pick up market share.

Going out of business sales will begin soon for Bon-Ton’s stores, e-commerce and mobile platforms as well as its Bergner’s, Boston Store, Carson’s, Elder-Beerman, Herberger’s and Younkers nameplates.

“Oh this is just too bad. I love my Carson’s,” said Maribeth Faland, 59, who has shopped at the Chicago-area department store for some 30 years. “I guess I will have to shop online soon. All the good stores are closing.”

More than 8,000 U.S. stores closed in 2017, nearly double the average of the previous 10 years, according to data by the International Council of Shopping Centers.

York, Pennsylvania-based Bon-Ton, which traces its roots to 1854, had 23,000 employees and 256 stores across 23 states when it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in February with the hope of cutting debt and emerging from a brutal retail landscape under a new owner. But a proposal by U.S. mall owners Namdar Realty Group and Washington Prime Group Inc that would have kept open a large portion of Bon-Ton locations never materialized.

Instead, a joint venture by liquidators Great American Group and Tiger Capital Group won an auction for Bon-Ton’s inventory and other assets. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Mary Walrath of Delaware said on Wednesday she would approve the sale to the joint venture.

It is possible some of the Bon-Ton stores will be acquired by another retail operator that could reopen the stores under one of its nameplates, but the timing and outcome of future auctions by the liquidators is still uncertain.

Bon-Ton also competes with traditional operators such as Boscov’s Department Store LLC, Dillard’s Inc and Von Maur Inc.

Its failure comes weeks after Toys ‘R’ Us began a piecemeal liquidation of its namesake stores and Babies ‘R’ Us.</s>Liquidation sales at 212 Bon-Ton stores, associated nameplates and e-commerce sites begin Friday and are expected to run 10 to 12 weeks, the York-based retailer said in a news release.

This includes stores at the Palmer Park, Westgate and South malls in the Lehigh Valley. Such sales at stores in the Phillipsburg and Trexler malls have been underway for some time since their closings were previously announced along with 36 other properties.

Some stores may close sooner and others may remain open longer, depending on inventory, the corporation said in the frequently asked questions section of its restructuring website.

Bon-Ton, which several years ago absorbed Allentown-based Hess's stores, is closing all its operations after it was announced earlier this week that bondholders and two liquidation companies won an auction for the stores' assets.

All the corporation's stores -- including the Bon-Ton, Bergner's, Boston Store, Carson's, Elder-Beerman, Herberger's and Younkers nameplates -- will shut after the sales are complete.

The corporation has stores in 23 states.

Tony Rhodin may be reached at arhodin@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyRhodin. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
All Bon-Ton department stores are expected to close by August. At the time of announcement, the company operated 256 stores under its own name and the Bergner's, Boston Store, Carson's, Elder-Beerman, Herberger's and Younkers nameplates.