Carol's Daughter Bankrupt, Closes 5 Stores And Lays Off 29 Employees

WOW! And we thought the curly hair biz was booming.

Carol’s Daughter Files Bankruptcy, Closes Stores And Lays Off 29 Employees

It looks like one of the first brands to embrace the natural hair phenomenon has hit hard times.

According to Wall Street Journal reports:

Companies affiliated with Carol’s Daughter filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Thursday in connection with the beauty brand’s move to close most of its stores.

CD Stores LLC, formerly known as Carol’s Daughter Stores LLC, filed its Chapter 11 petition with the Manhattan bankruptcy court, as did the individual companies behind Carol’s Daughter stores. Court papers show that CD Stores is 100% owned by parent company Carol’s Daughter Holdings LLC (the parent company didn’t file for bankruptcy). And the petition, which reported assets and debts each in the $1 million to $10 million range, was signed by Carol’s Daughter Chief Financial Officer John D. Elmer.

In new court papers filed Thursday afternoon, Mr. Elmer said most Carol’s Daughter stores have been unprofitable since 2010. Before the bankruptcy filing, the company closed all but two of its seven stores and terminated 29 of its 42 employees. It hopes to use its time in Chapter 11 to reorganize and consolidate its operations around its two open stores, in Brooklyn and Harlem. Besides the stores, Carol’s Daughter products are offered for sale on its website and through such third parties as the Home Shopping Network and Sephora.

In fact, Carol’s Daughter products are now available in more than 2,000 other retail stores around the U.S., according to Richard Dantas, chief executive of Carol’s Daughter. He said that the company is refocusing its distribution strategy to focus on these retailers.

“Today’s filing in no way reflects the parent company’s healthy financial situation, and is a part of its plan to grow the brand through national retail outlets,” Mr. Dantas said Thursday in an emailed statement.

Founded in 1993 by Lisa Price (the eponymous Carol’s daughter), the chain makes hair, body and skincare products with natural ingredients, with a special focus on products for African-American women. The line has enjoyed financial backing in the past from such celebrities as Will Smith, Jada Pinkett Smith and Jay Z and was featured on Oprah.

Do you think they’ll be able to bounce back after this??? Their stuff is a little on the pricy side, do you think the natural sistas passed them over in favor of more affordable options?

Which Carol’s Daughter products do you love? We know we’d miss their almond cookie souffle if they went out of biz!