P. M. BRIEFING : Ames to Shut 221 Stores, Lay Off 18,000 to ‘Stem Bleeding’

Ames Department Stores Inc. announced today it will close 221 stores and lay off approximately 18,000 workers in order to stem the losses that toppled it into Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection earlier this year.

Ames said the 221 figure includes 33 stores the company previously said it would close.

The closures, which affect stores in Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, North Carolina and Florida, are subject to the approval of the bankruptcy court, Ames noted.

Ames’ Chairman Steven Pistner said in a telephone interview that the 221 stores were the source of “rather dramatic losses” and that the move to shut them had been taken “to stem the bleeding immediately.”

Of the stores to be closed, 184 are former Zayre stores. Retail industry experts say the sources of Ames’ financial troubles were both the mismanagement of the Zayre discount chain it bought two years ago for almost $800 million and the debt it took on to finance that purchase.