Löytötex bankruptcy clearance sale to begin Thursday as over 70 workers face dismissal

Finnish discount retail chain Löytötex has dismissed all of its more than 70 employees following its bankruptcy filing, with a clearance sale set to begin across all eight stores on Thursday, reports Yle. Some workers are still waiting for wages owed to them.

Leo Lagerstam, the attorney managing the bankruptcy estate, said the majority of the dismissed employees were in permanent positions. He confirmed that some wages had gone unpaid since the last payroll cycle, but said the estate would ensure all workers receive what they are owed through an expedited wage guarantee process.

The estate may also offer fixed-term contracts to some workers after the standard two-week notice period, should the clearance sale extend beyond initial expectations.

Stores closed Wednesday, sale starts Thursday

All eight stores were open on Tuesday but remained closed on Wednesday. The clearance sale will begin in all physical stores on Thursday and is expected to last at least two weeks. Lagerstam said the stores will operate during normal opening hours and that all locations will offer the same discounts.

“We are starting with significant discounts,” he said, though he declined to specify how the discount levels would change as the sale progresses.

The chain’s online store has already been permanently shut down. Löytötex currently operates stores in Kangasala, Jämsä, Orivesi, Virrat, Mänttä-Vilppula, Pälkäne, Sastamala, and Tampere. Most of the premises are leased, and the bankruptcy estate has the right to use them for the duration of the clearance sale, after which they will be returned to landlords.

Debts near 6.8 million euros

According to the bankruptcy filing, Löytötex’s total debts amount to approximately 6.8 million euros, a figure that Lagerstam said will be confirmed through the formal creditor claims process. He noted that the company’s financial difficulties had accumulated over an extended period.

Löytötex was founded in 1979 as a family business.