American Apparel Files for Bankruptcy; Here's A Look Back at The Retailer's Struggles

Once one of the country's hottest clothing retailers, American Apparel has been making headlines for all the wrong reasons. On Monday, years of declining revenue forced the company to file for bankruptcy. Back in May 2006, founder and CEO Dov Charney was slapped with two sexual harassment lawsuits. Among the allegations: holding job interviews while wearing underwear. Then in December 2006, despite the wave of bad publicity, Endeavor Acquisition, agreed to purchase the retailer for roughly $260 million. But the dark cloud soon returned over American Apparel. In 2010, its auditor Deloitte & Touche resigned acknowledging that its 2009 financial statements may not have been reliable. That led to an investigation by the SEC and U.S. Attorney's office. In June 2014, American Apparel's board fired Charney following allegations of misconduct. Finally, in August, American Apparel warned investors that it wouldn't have enough cash to 'sustain operations for the next twelve months.'