The tumultuous year of 2020, marked by the tragic death of NBA

star Kobe Bryant, was further marred by the coronavirus pandemic

and civil unrest following George Floyd’s murder. As the economy

faced challenges due to the pandemic, longstanding retailers struggled

against the rising dominance of online platforms like Amazon. America’s

oldest department store chain, Lord & Taylor, founded in 1824,

is now set to close all 38 of its stores after nearly two centuries in business.

Lord & Taylor, known for its pioneering role as the first department store in the United States,

filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in August 2020, initially planning to keep fourteen locations open.

However, the economic pressures led to a change in strategy, and the decision was made to close

all stores in a desperate liquidation sale. Last year,

the French clothing company Le Tote Inc. acquired Lord & Taylor.

The closure of Lord & Taylor adds to the list of venerable American businesses facing economic fallout,

including Brooks Brothers, J. Crew, J.C. Penney, Neiman Marcus, Stage Stores,

Ann Taylor, and Lane Bryant. Brooks Brothers, another two-century-old company

that had dressed numerous U.S. presidents, and Barneys New York, its longtime rival, also succumbed to bankruptcy.