| Gymboree Group, Inc. | |
| Type: | Subsidiary |
| Industry: | Retail (original), eCommerce |
| Products: | Children's clothes & Toys |
| Parent: | The Children's Place (2019–present) |
| Homepage: | www.Gymboree.com |
Gymboree is a sub brand of The Children's Place. Gymboree began with operating retail stores between the early 1970s and the later 2010s. It was founded by Joan Barnes.[1]
In 1986, the company opened a chain of clothing stores named Gymboree. Gymboree stores offered coordinating children's clothing. The sizes ranged from newborn to size ten. As of January 2019, it operated 380 Gymboree stores, 154 Gymboree outlets, 147 Janie & Jack stores, 253 Crazy 8 stores, and 11 Crazy 8 outlets in the U.S. and Canada.[2] Crazy 8 was started in August 2007. It featured lower-priced clothing and was Gymboree's direct competitor for The Children's Place and Old Navy.
In 2010, Bain Capital acquired the company for US$1.8 billion.[3]
In June 2017, Gymboree announced it was filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.[4] In September 2017, the company emerged from bankruptcy.[5] [6]
In November 2018, it was reported that Gymboree would file for bankruptcy for the second time in 14 months, and as a result, Gymboree announced plans to discontinue the Crazy 8 brand after the holiday season.[7]
On January 17, 2019, Gymboree filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, and eliminated all Gymboree, Gymboree Outlet, and Crazy 8 brick-and-mortar formats as a result. The company sold its Janie & Jack brand to Gap, Inc.[8]
In July 2016, The Gymboree Corporation sold the Gymboree Play & Music business to Zeavion Holding, a private company with a focus on the education and entertainment sectors. Gymboree Play & Music is now completely separate from the Gymboree Corporation and is operating parent-child play classes for ages 0–5. As of 2023, Play & Music operates in over 40 countries and has more than 733 centers internationally.[9]
On June 24, 2019, Gymboree and Crazy 8's assets were acquired by The Children's Place, who announced that the former would become a digitally native sub brand with store-within-a-store locations at The Children's Place stores.[10] It was announced on January 30, 2020, that The Children's Place would debut Gymboree in February that year, featuring an "early access" program that would allow early access to the first 10,000 customers who register a spot.[11]
In November 2005, Gymboree settled a lawsuit relating to overtime compensation in Riverside, California for $2.3 million. The lawsuit alleged that Gymboree did not pay mandatory overtime or provide required meal breaks.[12]