After more than 25 years, an era is coming to an end for a staple of the American mall experience as Francesca’s, a once-popular women’s boutique, begins the final stages of its liquidation.

In late January, the company abruptly announced plans to shutter all locations nationwide, then filed for bankruptcy in February and halted sales on its website.

Now, the company will no longer accept gift cards as it continues winding-down operations.

“Effective 2/27/2026, gift cards and/or merchandise credits can no longer be accepted,” the company wrote on its website.

“Guests with gift cards may submit a claim for the value at cases.stretto.com/francescasacquisition.”

Read more: Say goodbye to this mall staple, closing all stores

News of the closures began circulating in January after Francesca’s filed federally mandated Workers Adjustment and Retraining Notices to inform employees of upcoming layoffs.

At the time, CoStar reported Francesca’s outlined plans to permanently close the entirety of its U.S. operations, which includes more than 450 stores in 45 states, in a letter to the Texas Workforce Commission.

The closure of its Houston headquarters at 8760 Clayton Road will result in 202 job losses alone.

“While this is difficult news, the company provided written and verbal notice to employees as soon as the company was able after learning of the unforeseen circumstances,” Christine Kaighn, Francesca’s Chief Stores and Culture Officer said in the letter.

Read more: Fashion retailer files bankruptcy after 25 years, abruptly halts online orders

The retailer cited debts and lender-repayment challenges, supply chain issues and investor pull-out issues as primary factors playing into the liquidation.

According to Retail Dive, Francesca’s primary lender issued a default notice and froze the chain’s borrowing abilities.

Another issue arose when an investor pledged capital to keep the brand afloat through January 2026 but backed out in late December.

There are currently six Francesca’s locations in Massachusetts, with stores in Natick, Burlington, Braintree, Wrentham, Holyoke and Longmeadow.

Francesca’s, founded in 1999, previously filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2020.

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