Plus-size retailer Avenue warns it will shutter without buyer: sources

Plus size retailer Avenue has 60 days to find a buyer — or it will shutter all of its 260 stores across the country, The Post has learned.

Employees of Avenue — owned by Versa Capital Management, a private equity firm that also owns Black Angus Steakhouse and Silver Airways — learned about the looming deadline at a staff-wide meeting Wednesday, according to sources with knowledge of the talks.

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Management told stunned staffers that it is searching for a buyer — but that if no one steps forward in two months the company will shut down and they will lose their jobs, a source said.

Employees were also told that they would not be paid severance, sources said.

Rochelle Park, NJ based Avenue, which sells moderately priced apparel from size 14 to 32, confirmed that it is “working with advisors to evaluate options.”

“The broad disruption in this challenging retail climate affects many retailers including Avenue,” the company said in a statement. “Avenue deeply appreciates the support of its customers, employees, suppliers and other stakeholders as it considers these alternatives.

““We remain focused on Avenue as a retail destination for style-minded, plus-size women,” Versa said in a statement.

Philadelphia-based Versa acquired Avenue in a bankruptcy auction in 2012, when the retailer operated 433 stores. A year ago, Avenue named a new chief executive, Mark Walsh, a board member who had been advising the company since 2017.

Sales of the plus-sized retailer have been steadily declining, according to sources familiar with their business. Today its web site is offering a flash sale featuring 40 percent off “new arrivals,” and as much as 50 percent off clearance items.

Dressbarn, which also specializes in plus-sized items, announced in May that it’s shuttering its entire chain, or 650 stores, by the end of the year amid declining sales.