Ames Department Stores

Ames Department Stores' 2002 liquidation ended a discount chain that had grown to 700 stores through acquisition. The company's fatal error was buying Hills Department Stores in 1998 and Zayre's stores in 1988 - troubled assets that spread problems rather than creating scale advantages. Each acquisition added complexity and debt without competitive improvement. Ames couldn't match Walmart's prices or Target's positioning. Complete liquidation followed the second bankruptcy in three years.