David’s Bridal to close Marion store June 27

MARION — The David’s Bridal store in Marion is scheduled to close June 27, according to a store employee, and the national chain is seeking to lease its store in Collins Road Plaza.

David's Bridal, in business since 1950, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in April. It also had filed for bankruptcy in 2018.

The Pennsylvania-based company is one of the largest retailers of wedding gowns and formal wear, with about 300 stores and more than 11,000 employees nationwide.

More than 9,200 of those employees across the country are expected to lose their jobs, according to the Associated Press.

In Iowa, the company will lay off about 100 people in its four stores this month, according to a Workforce Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act notice filed April 14.

The notice listed 26 layoffs at the Marion store, which opened in April 2005, 29 in Clive, 22 in Davenport and 17 in Sioux City.

The 9,000-square-foot store, at 1402 Twixt Town Rd. in Marion, is being offered for lease at $8.50 per square foot, one of the lower rents among the chain's 300 stores. The Marion lease ends April 30, 2025, according to an online bankruptcy auction list.

James Marcum, CEO of David’s Bridal, said in a recent news release the company had modernized its marketing and “customer interaction processes,” but that it “continues to be challenged by the post-COVID environment and uncertain economic conditions, leading us to take this step to identify a buyer who can continue to operate our business going forward.”