The Big Lots located at 15977 state Route 170 is one of two large retail stores in the Calcutta area closing. A sign in the store’s window advertises the business is in its final 14 days.

EAST LIVERPOOL — The JOANN Fabrics in East Liverpool is one of the 500 of the company’s 850 locations across the country that could potentially be facing immediate closure due to bankruptcy.

In addition to the East Liverpool location located at 15765 state Route 170, 32 other locations across Ohio will be closing including two in Akron, one in Athens, one in Chillicothe, one in Cincinnati, three in Columbus, and one in Dayton, Defiance, Dublin, Evendale, Fairborn, Findlay, Fremont, Hamilton, Hudson, Lancaster, Lima, Marietta, Mason, Mayfield Heights, Medina, New Philadelphia, Niles, North Olmsted, Reynoldsburg, St. Clairsville, Sandusky, Springfield, Steubenville and Youngstown.

More closings could be announced as the bankruptcy process progresses.

The Ohio based company headquartered in Hudson, made the announcement within a month of filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy for the second time in a year.

According to a court filing, the company listed approximately 530 underperforming stores in more than 40 states that are anticipated to begin immediate closure. The company had originally planned to keep all the locations open throughout the bankruptcy.

When the stores will close is not yet known at this time. A hearing is scheduled for Friday

The company cited rising interest rates and a decline in sales after the COVID 19 Pandemic but was able to exit the bankruptcy filed in March 2023 after the business became a private company, Nexstar’s WJET reported.

According to the company’s website, the business has 21,453 employees. Information about how many employees in Ohio and at the East Liverpool location would lose their jobs was not able to be obtained.

Gordon Brothers, a company headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts who describes themselves as global asset experts on their website and recently took control of Big Lots, who also filed for bankruptcy last year had been identified as a possible bidder for JOANNS.

In addition to the JOANNs facing potential closure, The Big Lots located at 15977 state Route 170 is in the process of closing due to bankruptcy. A large yellow closing banner hangs over the entrance to Big Lots and a sign in the window advertises the store is in its final 14 days.

JOANN store employees are not permitted to speak about the potential closure.

Calls to JOANNs corporate office were not answered.

kgarabrandt@mojonews.com