Goody’s in Conway to be converted to new chain store, has hiring event scheduled
Say goodbye to Goody’s, Conway. Say hello to Gordmans.
Stage, the parent company of both retail store chains, announced Monday that it is converting the local Goody’s and its other 12 South Carolina stores into Gordmans by April 17.
Goody’s is considered one of Stage’s department stores along with Bealls, Palais Royal, Peebles and the parent store, Stage. Gordmans are considered off-price stores — businesses like Ross or TJ Maxx that sell name-brand items at cheaper prices. In a news release, Stage announced the S.C. stores being converted will become “an off-price retailer offering popular name brand apparel, on-trend home décor and other merchandise for the entire family at prices that are lower than department stores.”
It’s unclear if Gordmans will be doing a complete overhaul of merchandise currently for sale in Goody’s. Nor was there any mention of a discounted selloff of inventory. An email inquiry pertaining to those questions was not immediately returned.
Stage is hiring at the 13 stores to be converted, which include locations in Barnwell, Batesburg, Dillon, Florence, Hartsville, Kingstree, Manning, Marion, Newberry, Pageland, Varnville and Williamston in addition to Conway’s Goody’s. A job fair for those shops is scheduled for 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Feb. 11. The release didn’t include any information regarding the plight of current employees.
According to a Forbes article, Stage stated that moving to the off-price strategy is its best bet for the future.
Stage purchased Goody’s in 2009 through a bankruptcy auction. The parent company began the off-price venture by acquiring Gordmans in 2017, began converting some of its department stores into them in 2018, and in 2019 announced the plan for the full conversion with the goal of having 700 total off-price stores by mid-2020.
This story was originally published February 3, 2020 at 8:01 PM.
