Shopping blues

Filed for Chapter 11 protection on July 29th

When the Heyward, Calif. based chain declared bankruptcy earlier this summer, it hoped to keep its 170 stores open during the process. But the 59-year old company, which received approval for a $465 million financing deal, has announced 26 store closures since then. As soaring fuel and food prices squeeze wallets, Mervyn's, which caters to a mid-range market, has lost customers to lower-cost competitors such as Wal-Mart. Stores are scattered throughout the Southwest, but many locations are in California, where rising prices have hit the economy especially hard. In order to survive, the retailer may have to take its prices higher or lower; right now, the middle is a bad place to be.

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