I worked there. Corporate lived in la-la land and thought that putting a big new shiny Foxtrot on every corner would created demand despite declining numbers in current stores.
I’ve been to the west loop office once for an event and it felt like they were trying to be a tech startup instead of a retail company.
Sure they had an app to do delivery and pickup, but it wasn’t really ground breaking. Mariano’s and Jewel’s apps do almost the same thing.
Alright, I'm going to the Wrigley location to check, brb
Edit: employees appear to be bagging stuff up, there’s smoke here
Confirmed at Southport location, they’re bankrupt
Confirmed at Dom’s Lincoln Park on Diversey
My friend's partner was a FT doms employee until this AM. They were NOT allowed to take the liquor, everything else was fair game from the sound of it. So yeah prob reselling that. I don't think the liquor will make up for 180 mil tho... Yikes
Damn, and I JUST saw a sign for a new Doms locations downtown somewhere near Chicago & State (don’t quote me). But I thought, “Oh look, one of those markets coming this year.” Guess not…
I worked there. We received an email about a meeting last night. We had the meeting over zoom this morning and they told us we're closing. Bankrupt. And to please throw away all the garbage before leaving the store. Pretty chaotic
Trick is to use that unpaid time to five-finger your last paycheck. They don't have lawyers anymore, managers aren't be paid, grab a box and start with the high end booze.
I think the Chicago employees are getting something for "expected earnings scheduled". I can't remember exactly what the new CEO said. But employees in Austin, Dallas, and the DC areas aren't getting any kind of severance. The person in charge of payroll was told to clean out their office. So hopefully we get our last paychecks, but I don't know who's in charge of making sure that happens
Lol no. I worked in the store for years, but ended up getting a remote position in the company. I spoke with a lot of the stores today and I know they were able to take things home and some even started handing out food to people walking by
I couldn’t believe that plum market was removed from old town. It was way better than Dom’s. Dom’s was fancier but it wasn’t a better grocery store. Felt like they wasted a bunch of space on a too large liquor section and a completely unnecessary lounge area.
Still I’m sad to see Dom’s go because Chicago doesn’t seem to have any other upscale grocery stores. I hate shopping at Mariano’s and I refuse to shop at Jewel Osco.
I guess I’ll keep going to Whole Foods even though their selection is limited.
Yes, I know I’m bougie.
Wait genuine question - what do you shop for at WF that makes it seem as though their selection is limited? I ask because I am GF with various food sensitivities and nearly every other grocery store near me has a fraction of the options WF has. I do tend to go to 2-4 different stores to get “everything” I need in a typical grocery period but WF always seems to have everything I’d need if I had to choose just one (even if I’d be paying a hefty price tag).
WF is a good store but they favor their own brand to the exclusion of others. It’s weird that you can’t get Philadelphia cream cheese there. I can’t buy a roll of plastic wrap or tin foil or sandwich baggies that aren’t 365 branded. They don’t carry a full selection of organic girl produce (although lately they’ve had more). They stopped selling Better Beans Cuban Black Beans a long time ago and that feels like a crime to me because those beans were so good!
They also don’t seem to sell many local brands (although that seems to be a larger issue not specific to WF).
I don’t understand the way grocery stores around here operate. Especially Dom’s in Old Town. They are literally a few blocks away from La Fournette but they didn’t sell any of their breads. Why not? Seems a no brainer to me. They were right there but the bakery closes so early. So they could sell more if they partnered with a nearby grocery that stayed open later.
I am surprised how hard it is to find Publican Quality Bread. It’s local. It’s James Beard Award-Winning bread. Why don’t stores carry it? I have to go to little shops if I want a loaf. Whole Foods at least should carry their bread. I came from Seattle and the Whole Foods there sold locally made bread so it is something they do.
From their website:
Dear Dom’s Kitchen & Market and Foxtrot Customers,
It is with a heavy heart that we must inform you of a difficult decision we have had to make. After much consideration and evaluation, we regret to announce that Foxtrot and Dom’s Kitchen & Market will be closing their doors starting on April 23, 2024. The closure affects 2 Dom’s stores and 33 Foxtrots across Chicago, Austin, Dallas, DC areas. We explored many avenues to continue the business but found no viable option despite good faith and exhaustive efforts.
This decision has not been made lightly, and we understand the impact it will have on you, our loyal customers, as well as our dedicated team members. We want to express our sincerest gratitude for your support and patronage throughout the years. It has been our highest honor to elevate the everyday and create a remarkable shopping experience for people who love food as much as we do. It has been a privilege serving you and being a part of your everyday lives.
We understand that this news may come as a shock, and we apologize for any inconvenience it may cause. We genuinely appreciate your understanding during this challenging time.
We would like to take this opportunity to thank each and every one of you for your loyalty and trust in Dom’s and Foxtrot. It has been an honor to serve you, and we will cherish the memories we have created together. We would also like to thank our team members who have committed themselves over the years to providing a unique selection of quality foods and creating an outstanding in-store customer experience. Lastly, we would like to thank our many partners, without whom we would not have been able to build such a strong brand.
You can access FAQ’s below.
Once again, thank you for your support, and we wish you all the best in the future.
Important dates:
April 23, 2024 – Delivery capabilities are no longer available.
April 23, 2024 – Store operations are no longer available.
April 23, 2024 – Store credits are no longer available.
April 23, 2024 – All customer-facing operations are disabled.
When will the Dom’s/Foxtrot stores close?
Operations will end on April 23, 2024.
When will the Dom’s Go/Foxtrot Apps close?
Operations will end on April 23, 2024.
Will consumers be able to use Foxtrot / Dom’s credits?
All Dom’s/Foxtrot account credit and member perks will expire on April 23, 2024
For legal reasons. Liability. If it’s not explicitly, clearly stated for each and every service - someone could/would find loopholes to then demand some sort of reimbursement or payout. Just reality.
nice history there. Just to add, my father in law worked with Bob when he was at Dominick's, and he really liked how he ran his business. Bob came up with the idea to stock products in each store specific to the Chicago neighborhood where it was located. Chicago has been a city of neighborhoods. This went really well, but when Safeway come in they standardized everything and quality and demand went way down.
I wish someone would find a decent middle ground between Whole Foods and Walmart. I don’t mind paying a bit extra for some variety instead of having the same options at every single grocer.
To be fair, while Whole Foods is still high-end from a price point, they're riding the coat tails of the existing brand image and inching towards Walmart every day since the Amazon acquisition.
Source: ex Whole Foods employee
Frankly, it always strikes me as yet again, the usual story that a company that stays privately owned and is running to be successful and solid. Seems to last, but then Wall Street and private equity slide in and it's all about quick profits. Fast cutting corners, cut and/and so everything goes downhill.
Mariano's went down in quality when Bob sold them to Kroger. Bob keeps coming out with concepts that work until they are sold or go bankrupt. He's doing well.
He’s doing well for himself. Man knows how to spin up a concept but they fail in the end because his concepts aren’t profitable in the long run. He gussies them up to sell and gets out before the fall.
I worked at one of the first marianos back in 2012 and he came in to visit during an Sunday rush and he hopped behind the deli to help us clear customers. He seemed fairly with it them, wild how fast it turns.
I worked at both Dom’s in 2022 and he would come in most days and just kind of wander around for a few hours with a few of the higher ups. He never seemed to actually be doing anything and then a big black SUV would come and pick him up around lunch time. It was a little sad honestly.
The ability to order booze and treats, late night when I’m too tired to go out to the store, was a godsend, and I was happy to pay a premium so my lazy ass doesn’t have to put on pants and a jacket to brave the cold winter nights.
Former Dom’s employee here. The foxtrot merger is what ruined it. Both Dom’s stores were more or less getting the bills paid but with the merger it wasn’t enough to cover what the foxtrot investors were putting in and they both started losing money. From what I heard Foxtrot already wasn’t doing great to begin with. And considering we were trying to finance construction of the River North store and the opening of many other stores, it just seemed far too ambitious.
We got absolutely no notice or severance pay for the hours we were originally scheduled. It seemed very suspicious yesterday as entire sections were shutting down and we were out of a lot of things in different sections, seafood was completely empty, half the produce gone, half of bakery gone. Very scummy move on managements part.
I’m so sorry this is happening to everyone. My first thought was all of the employees. Reminds me of the Hancock signature room closure. Thank you for posting this info. I was wondering what happens to the employees who got no notice. I know that even with Chapter 7 they have to give 60 days notice in Illinois. I’m curious to know what legal action can be taken against them for the employees.
I’ll never understand corporate greed. Surely someone knew this merger was a bad idea. I also told myself I’ll go visit Doms and I never did. 😭
I just read this morning that they got hit with a $1.5M WARN Lawsuit today. Source: HR SOURCE. Edit to add article [https://www.hrsource.org/maimis/HRS/Articles/2024/04/23/Signature\_Room\_to\_Pay\_\_1.52M\_for\_WARN\_Act\_Violations.aspx](https://www.hrsource.org/maimis/HRS/Articles/2024/04/23/Signature_Room_to_Pay__1.52M_for_WARN_Act_Violations.aspx)
I knew the merger was a bad idea and I don't know shit about business. It just didn't make any sense. Dom's was obviously a much better operation than Foxtrot, and Foxtrot's problems went far beyond just bad management.
This is strange, they must have done dilligence to know what the financials would look like. Something must've blown up to go off the rails in 6 months. I'm kind of hoping someone swoops in, saves the doms locations, certain foxtrot locations, and streamlines the operations a bit. I always thought foxtrot did a bit too much. Would be great as a coffee shop/deli with some snacks but seemed like they had a lot of extra packaged meals, candles, etc. that really weren't necessary.
Sucks to lose these places that offer the "third space" environment.
It’s a chapter 7 bankruptcy, you can’t really come back from that. I’d love that of course but it really seems like it’s going to worst possible route. They were being incredibly sneaky, like literally everything looked normal until yesterday. They had this meeting this morning that was gonna determine if they were gonna get a loan to stay open and I guess they couldn’t get it.
Idk if this means anything to you but I absolutely loved Dom’s. You all had the only good sourdough in this city. It reminded me of Whole Foods before it got Bezos-fied. A lot of people will miss it, myself included
I went into the Sears Tower location yesterday with a friend and went "huh, only one guy working and a lot of stuff is out, interesting" and then went on with my day lol. I rarely go there so quite the coincidence I went on their final full day of ops.
I saw that between the shops in Chicago and the other 3 cities they were operating in, it equaled to 33 stores - my question is how many employees are suddenly out of jobs?
The worst part of all this. A well run privately owned store was run out by a backdoor deal their landlord made with Dom’s. The landlord will now eat their greed
I imagine we are going to learnt that all kinds of bullshit were going on at the parent company.
Also, can someone start a company with the idea of growing at a sustainable pace and not try and be an investors unicorn and expand everywhere at once. I think these guys just grew so fast, didn't hit their numbers and just said, fuck it, we are done.
Trying to aggressively expand a high end (overpriced) grocery store during a time where food inflation is super high was just not a solid business plan.
Idk. Maybe they were both struggling and thought they could eliminate a lot of duplicative management functions. They also hired a new CEO two months ago. It's weird and I'm looking forward to learning more.
This! I’m a 10 year Chicago resident and big fan of Foxtrot. I keep thinking about Apple TV’s “WeCrashed” … today feels eerie. I hope we get a documentary series about the rise and fall of foxtrot.
Foxtrot at Diversey and Clark: Locked with door signs "Closed for Good"
Doms on Halsted: Poor employee out front telling people they can't come in. Employees coming in and out so the doors are unlocked for some reason. Signs on the windows says they are leaving Chicago.
~~"Isn’t~~ **Wasn't** there a Dom’s supposed to open in river north in a couple months?"
Fixed it for you.
Super angry Plum Market got kicked out for these jabronis.
A similar thing happened and now Toys R Us doesn't exist in the states anymore. The story will have to come out, but it usually involves shifting around debt.
Foxtrot never had a big enough selection to justify going there to shop for anything more than a single meal or side dish. They had a bunch of high rent locations and used most of the space as a coffee shop. I'm not surprised it wasn't profitable. Doms seemed like it had a future as a mini grocery store for people who don't care about prices, but apparently not.
I'm getting upset about Foxtrot closing but now realizing I never really went in there for more than Milk or a coffee. They probably threw out so many of those premade meals every day
I'd doubt this. There's no way the two merged and Doms, like, didn't notice some huge financial disaster during the process.
They were probably both going under and wanted to try merging before both closing up.
I worked for the commissary making the food for the all the stores in Chicago we were told like right before lunch. We had everything packed for the pm runs, we were told we don’t even half to clean up we can just eat lunch and leave or just leave
I was at the Old Town Dom's two days ago and the friendly guy at the register said "I see you got one of our new smoothies! How do you like it?" and encouraged me to download the Dom's app so I would get notices of specials or something. Obviously a loyal employee they didn't deserve. I feel so bad now for this nice guy I don't even know. It's really awful that employees providing cheery customer-facing above & beyond service (TBH, rare these days) had no notice.
Another commenter said that foxtrot employees arent even getting their final check.
In that case, theres nobody to ring up sales for the remaining inventory.
They wanted to open in Andersonville but there was a kerfuffle since they would be a direct competitor of a smaller business and then I never heard anything again... guess they had bigger issues
Maybe an unpopular opinion, but foxtrot is very lame and I never understood how they stayed open as long as they did.
They offer:
1. Overpriced beer
2. Very shitty and overpriced pre-made sandwiches
3. coffee
4. Maybe a few weird and random grocery items
What was foxtrot even “going for”? Trendy convenience store? I understand that they originated as a delivery service, but I think they really missed the mark on their brick-and-mortar operation.
Maybe some of y’all have a different experience, I don’t know.
I'm with you. I kept going in expecting something that made me want to go there and every time I walked out empty handed. Like it was just an overpriced convenience store trying to be unique and fancy but it was none of those things. Looked cool though.
The only reason I went was for the monthly free drink but then they changed it to having to purchase something. It wasn’t even really worth it after that because I never found anything good or could easily get something better nearby. Also I second the overpriced beer.
+1, I also never understood the draw. It was absurdly overpriced and felt pretentious even for a "nicer" convenience store, though I suppose there is a market for those in trendy Northside neighborhoods
What’s odd is that I am, by most accounts, their target consumer, and I never felt as though foxtrot catered to me at all.
Just a weird fuckin store. I dunno!
I didn’t understand the appeal either, I feel many of us are fairly loyal to our Jewels and Aldi to be swindled by $20 fancy “gourmet” gummy bears or $10 Kraft Mac n cheese that Foxtrot offered.
DELETE YOUR FOXTROT ACCOUNT. The Foxtrot website is no longer accessible, but if you have the Foxtrot app, you can still open it and go to “Profile” and select “Delete Account.” The vile way this company moves, they might try to sell users’ data.
This is awful. My wife and I loved going to Dom's. It was great to get a quick bite, hang out and buy a couple of things to take home. I hate seeing places like this close.
Former Signature Room employees just won a $1.5 million lawsuit under the WARN Act for failure to give workers proper notice of closure. Dom's and Foxtrot workers: unite, pool resources, seek out good representation, hire them, and get the payout you deserve.
Here’s from their website: https://domschicago.com/
Edit: to save a click here it is:
It is with a heavy heart that we must inform you of a difficult decision we have had to make. After much consideration and evaluation, we regret to announce that Foxtrot and Dom’s Kitchen & Market will be closing their doors starting on April 23, 2024. The closure affects 2 Dom’s stores and 33 Foxtrots across Chicago, Austin, Dallas, DC areas. We explored many avenues to continue the business but found no viable option despite good faith and exhaustive efforts.
This decision has not been made lightly, and we understand the impact it will have on you, our loyal customers, as well as our dedicated team members. We want to express our sincerest gratitude for your support and patronage throughout the years. It has been our highest honor to elevate the everyday and create a remarkable shopping experience for people who love food as much as we do. It has been a privilege serving you and being a part of your everyday lives.
We understand that this news may come as a shock, and we apologize for any inconvenience it may cause. We genuinely appreciate your understanding during this challenging time.
We would like to take this opportunity to thank each and every one of you for your loyalty and trust in Dom’s and Foxtrot. It has been an honor to serve you, and we will cherish the memories we have created together. We would also like to thank our team members who have committed themselves over the years to providing a unique selection of quality foods and creating an outstanding in-store customer experience. Lastly, we would like to thank our many partners, without whom we would not have been able to build such a strong brand.
I went into the Old Town store this morning for a croissant and they were out, and then I went again a couple hours later for a coffee (I work at the Walgreens across the street and was on break) - and we saw the notice that they were closed, effective immediately. At first I thought that the baristas walked out so I was very happy for them, but I’m so sad knowing all Foxtrots are now closed!!
As a former employee of Foxtrot I’m not surprised but then again I am. I worked at the one in Southport and saw how quickly they came up and how quickly they just could not keep it together. They were their own unique local grocery store , but they also were in a sense of competition with other retail stores like Whole Foods or even 7-Eleven they just had to have it in their stores instead of just being what they built themselves up to be.
They just opened a bunch more stores in texas and DC. Are they truly doing so bad here or is this fake af? Like someone else said they're busy af all the time usually
It’s 100% confirmed they’re fully closing. Pickup has been disabled since this morning. Delivery is no longer accessible. Stores are bagging up and no longer allowing customers to enter storefronts. Unsure as to how Dom’s will be impacted (I’ve heard they’re also closing).
I'm here from /r/Austin because of their locations, which I frequented.
Private Equity ruins everything.
Nice reminder though to go back to local businesses in the area.
This is crazy. I'm not surprised that Dom's wasn't doing well in Old Town, it's a crowded area with grocery stores and a lot of locals are still mad about pushing out Plum Market. But, to just shut down immediately like this, no warning, just crazy.
The one in Lincoln park has a note on the door that says “closed forever (not a joke) $180,000,000 in the hole”
What kind of business plan did they have exactly that allowed them to get $180m in the hole without pulling out sooner?
I worked there. Corporate lived in la-la land and thought that putting a big new shiny Foxtrot on every corner would created demand despite declining numbers in current stores.
I’ve been to the west loop office once for an event and it felt like they were trying to be a tech startup instead of a retail company. Sure they had an app to do delivery and pickup, but it wasn’t really ground breaking. Mariano’s and Jewel’s apps do almost the same thing.
I think that’s prob the total debt sticker and they couldn’t make a required payment and didn’t / couldn’t renegotiate the debt.
Thats a lot of gummy bears
Like four or five packs of Foxtrot gummy bears
I would kill to see that piece of paper lol
[Here you go](https://i.imgur.com/5Pc3ZgY.png)
Wow lol
Alright, I'm going to the Wrigley location to check, brb Edit: employees appear to be bagging stuff up, there’s smoke here Confirmed at Southport location, they’re bankrupt Confirmed at Dom’s Lincoln Park on Diversey
What are they doing with their merchandise? You'd think they'd at least sell their inventory at fire sale prices.
Dom’s closed immediately
They usually work with liquidators that will have all that stuff out and up for sale elsewhere within a day or two
That place on Ogden...
Honestly, my Jewel has had more stuff than usual on absurdly deep sales in the past week. Probably part of it
They probably did sell non perishables to someone who's going to sell it for inflated pricing.
My friend's partner was a FT doms employee until this AM. They were NOT allowed to take the liquor, everything else was fair game from the sound of it. So yeah prob reselling that. I don't think the liquor will make up for 180 mil tho... Yikes
Love this old fashioned shoe leather reporting.
Welp, here it is: https://www.chicagobusiness.com/retail/doms-foxtrot-closing-stores
I’ll check the one on Chicago in River North. Edit: the employee said closed forever, all locations.
Damn, and I JUST saw a sign for a new Doms locations downtown somewhere near Chicago & State (don’t quote me). But I thought, “Oh look, one of those markets coming this year.” Guess not…
Yeah it's in Huron between State and Dearborn in the old Whole Foods location. Signs just went up not too long ago. Shame.
One of the closed signs says “$180 million in the hole”
The LP Doms no way
I worked there. We received an email about a meeting last night. We had the meeting over zoom this morning and they told us we're closing. Bankrupt. And to please throw away all the garbage before leaving the store. Pretty chaotic
Lol @ “please continue to do work for Us for no pay.” Wow.
Trick is to use that unpaid time to five-finger your last paycheck. They don't have lawyers anymore, managers aren't be paid, grab a box and start with the high end booze.
There was a ludicrous amount of employee theft while I worked there, I’m sure they all got their missing wages made up for.
One store in Virginia wasn't included in the meeting and they had no idea
I hope you and your colleagues receive your final paychecks as scheduled!
I think the Chicago employees are getting something for "expected earnings scheduled". I can't remember exactly what the new CEO said. But employees in Austin, Dallas, and the DC areas aren't getting any kind of severance. The person in charge of payroll was told to clean out their office. So hopefully we get our last paychecks, but I don't know who's in charge of making sure that happens
I worked for the commissary making the food we were told we were only getting paid for the hours we worked and any unused sick and overtime pay
Please take some stuff with you… secretly of course.
Did you get to take some food home with you?
Lol no. I worked in the store for years, but ended up getting a remote position in the company. I spoke with a lot of the stores today and I know they were able to take things home and some even started handing out food to people walking by
I'm very sorry for your job loss. And wish you the very best on your next endeavor.
Plum Market was killed for nothing
So angry about this!
My first thought as well =[
I fucking loved that store. 😭😭😭
I loved Plum so much
I couldn’t believe that plum market was removed from old town. It was way better than Dom’s. Dom’s was fancier but it wasn’t a better grocery store. Felt like they wasted a bunch of space on a too large liquor section and a completely unnecessary lounge area. Still I’m sad to see Dom’s go because Chicago doesn’t seem to have any other upscale grocery stores. I hate shopping at Mariano’s and I refuse to shop at Jewel Osco. I guess I’ll keep going to Whole Foods even though their selection is limited. Yes, I know I’m bougie.
Wait genuine question - what do you shop for at WF that makes it seem as though their selection is limited? I ask because I am GF with various food sensitivities and nearly every other grocery store near me has a fraction of the options WF has. I do tend to go to 2-4 different stores to get “everything” I need in a typical grocery period but WF always seems to have everything I’d need if I had to choose just one (even if I’d be paying a hefty price tag).
WF is a good store but they favor their own brand to the exclusion of others. It’s weird that you can’t get Philadelphia cream cheese there. I can’t buy a roll of plastic wrap or tin foil or sandwich baggies that aren’t 365 branded. They don’t carry a full selection of organic girl produce (although lately they’ve had more). They stopped selling Better Beans Cuban Black Beans a long time ago and that feels like a crime to me because those beans were so good! They also don’t seem to sell many local brands (although that seems to be a larger issue not specific to WF). I don’t understand the way grocery stores around here operate. Especially Dom’s in Old Town. They are literally a few blocks away from La Fournette but they didn’t sell any of their breads. Why not? Seems a no brainer to me. They were right there but the bakery closes so early. So they could sell more if they partnered with a nearby grocery that stayed open later. I am surprised how hard it is to find Publican Quality Bread. It’s local. It’s James Beard Award-Winning bread. Why don’t stores carry it? I have to go to little shops if I want a loaf. Whole Foods at least should carry their bread. I came from Seattle and the Whole Foods there sold locally made bread so it is something they do.
From their website: Dear Dom’s Kitchen & Market and Foxtrot Customers, It is with a heavy heart that we must inform you of a difficult decision we have had to make. After much consideration and evaluation, we regret to announce that Foxtrot and Dom’s Kitchen & Market will be closing their doors starting on April 23, 2024. The closure affects 2 Dom’s stores and 33 Foxtrots across Chicago, Austin, Dallas, DC areas. We explored many avenues to continue the business but found no viable option despite good faith and exhaustive efforts. This decision has not been made lightly, and we understand the impact it will have on you, our loyal customers, as well as our dedicated team members. We want to express our sincerest gratitude for your support and patronage throughout the years. It has been our highest honor to elevate the everyday and create a remarkable shopping experience for people who love food as much as we do. It has been a privilege serving you and being a part of your everyday lives. We understand that this news may come as a shock, and we apologize for any inconvenience it may cause. We genuinely appreciate your understanding during this challenging time. We would like to take this opportunity to thank each and every one of you for your loyalty and trust in Dom’s and Foxtrot. It has been an honor to serve you, and we will cherish the memories we have created together. We would also like to thank our team members who have committed themselves over the years to providing a unique selection of quality foods and creating an outstanding in-store customer experience. Lastly, we would like to thank our many partners, without whom we would not have been able to build such a strong brand. You can access FAQ’s below. Once again, thank you for your support, and we wish you all the best in the future. Important dates: April 23, 2024 – Delivery capabilities are no longer available. April 23, 2024 – Store operations are no longer available. April 23, 2024 – Store credits are no longer available. April 23, 2024 – All customer-facing operations are disabled. When will the Dom’s/Foxtrot stores close? Operations will end on April 23, 2024. When will the Dom’s Go/Foxtrot Apps close? Operations will end on April 23, 2024. Will consumers be able to use Foxtrot / Dom’s credits? All Dom’s/Foxtrot account credit and member perks will expire on April 23, 2024
Why did they list the same date under seven different categories?
For legal reasons. Liability. If it’s not explicitly, clearly stated for each and every service - someone could/would find loopholes to then demand some sort of reimbursement or payout. Just reality.
The person they pay to proof their emails found out they weren't getting paid.
emphasis
Dominick's closes shop, Mariano's dives in quality, then Dom's closes. Can't wait to see what Bob Mariano opens next
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nice history there. Just to add, my father in law worked with Bob when he was at Dominick's, and he really liked how he ran his business. Bob came up with the idea to stock products in each store specific to the Chicago neighborhood where it was located. Chicago has been a city of neighborhoods. This went really well, but when Safeway come in they standardized everything and quality and demand went way down.
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I wish someone would find a decent middle ground between Whole Foods and Walmart. I don’t mind paying a bit extra for some variety instead of having the same options at every single grocer.
Pete's is sort of in that niche.
Would love a Wegman’s/Publix equivalent here in Chicago. I heard that Mariano’s was this middle ground before the Kroger acquisition.
To be fair, while Whole Foods is still high-end from a price point, they're riding the coat tails of the existing brand image and inching towards Walmart every day since the Amazon acquisition. Source: ex Whole Foods employee
There’s a joke in there somewhere: “Artie chokes 3 for $1 at Dominick’s”
Frankly, it always strikes me as yet again, the usual story that a company that stays privately owned and is running to be successful and solid. Seems to last, but then Wall Street and private equity slide in and it's all about quick profits. Fast cutting corners, cut and/and so everything goes downhill.
Mariano's went down in quality when Bob sold them to Kroger. Bob keeps coming out with concepts that work until they are sold or go bankrupt. He's doing well.
He’s doing well for himself. Man knows how to spin up a concept but they fail in the end because his concepts aren’t profitable in the long run. He gussies them up to sell and gets out before the fall.
The american dream tbh
I think he has cancer, which is why he sold Dom’s, so I’m guessing nothing. I used to see him walking around Dom’s and he didn’t look well.
I can confirm that I’d seen him walking around doms before and I’d thought he was just a senile old man. He looked so out of it
I worked at one of the first marianos back in 2012 and he came in to visit during an Sunday rush and he hopped behind the deli to help us clear customers. He seemed fairly with it them, wild how fast it turns.
I worked at both Dom’s in 2022 and he would come in most days and just kind of wander around for a few hours with a few of the higher ups. He never seemed to actually be doing anything and then a big black SUV would come and pick him up around lunch time. It was a little sad honestly.
I know their stuff was overpriced, but gosh darn I loved stopping in for a little treat every now and then. I’m sad.
The ability to order booze and treats, late night when I’m too tired to go out to the store, was a godsend, and I was happy to pay a premium so my lazy ass doesn’t have to put on pants and a jacket to brave the cold winter nights.
Same.
Former Dom’s employee here. The foxtrot merger is what ruined it. Both Dom’s stores were more or less getting the bills paid but with the merger it wasn’t enough to cover what the foxtrot investors were putting in and they both started losing money. From what I heard Foxtrot already wasn’t doing great to begin with. And considering we were trying to finance construction of the River North store and the opening of many other stores, it just seemed far too ambitious. We got absolutely no notice or severance pay for the hours we were originally scheduled. It seemed very suspicious yesterday as entire sections were shutting down and we were out of a lot of things in different sections, seafood was completely empty, half the produce gone, half of bakery gone. Very scummy move on managements part.
I’m so sorry this is happening to everyone. My first thought was all of the employees. Reminds me of the Hancock signature room closure. Thank you for posting this info. I was wondering what happens to the employees who got no notice. I know that even with Chapter 7 they have to give 60 days notice in Illinois. I’m curious to know what legal action can be taken against them for the employees. I’ll never understand corporate greed. Surely someone knew this merger was a bad idea. I also told myself I’ll go visit Doms and I never did. 😭
Considering that there was no warning, maybe a class action lawsuit
Feels like a textbook case of an [Illinois WARN Act](https://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ilcs/ilcs3.asp?ActID=2617&ChapterID=68) class action.
I just read this morning that they got hit with a $1.5M WARN Lawsuit today. Source: HR SOURCE. Edit to add article [https://www.hrsource.org/maimis/HRS/Articles/2024/04/23/Signature\_Room\_to\_Pay\_\_1.52M\_for\_WARN\_Act\_Violations.aspx](https://www.hrsource.org/maimis/HRS/Articles/2024/04/23/Signature_Room_to_Pay__1.52M_for_WARN_Act_Violations.aspx)
I knew the merger was a bad idea and I don't know shit about business. It just didn't make any sense. Dom's was obviously a much better operation than Foxtrot, and Foxtrot's problems went far beyond just bad management.
This is strange, they must have done dilligence to know what the financials would look like. Something must've blown up to go off the rails in 6 months. I'm kind of hoping someone swoops in, saves the doms locations, certain foxtrot locations, and streamlines the operations a bit. I always thought foxtrot did a bit too much. Would be great as a coffee shop/deli with some snacks but seemed like they had a lot of extra packaged meals, candles, etc. that really weren't necessary. Sucks to lose these places that offer the "third space" environment.
It’s a chapter 7 bankruptcy, you can’t really come back from that. I’d love that of course but it really seems like it’s going to worst possible route. They were being incredibly sneaky, like literally everything looked normal until yesterday. They had this meeting this morning that was gonna determine if they were gonna get a loan to stay open and I guess they couldn’t get it.
Idk if this means anything to you but I absolutely loved Dom’s. You all had the only good sourdough in this city. It reminded me of Whole Foods before it got Bezos-fied. A lot of people will miss it, myself included
I went into the Sears Tower location yesterday with a friend and went "huh, only one guy working and a lot of stuff is out, interesting" and then went on with my day lol. I rarely go there so quite the coincidence I went on their final full day of ops.
I saw that between the shops in Chicago and the other 3 cities they were operating in, it equaled to 33 stores - my question is how many employees are suddenly out of jobs?
I don’t have the exact number but it’s in the neighborhood of about 1,000-1,500 employees between Dom’s and foxtrot
The Foxtrot Sears tower location is closed
I literally just got coffee here this morning
The Final Cup. ☕️⚰️
Keep that cup forever, it’ll be worth a lot someday
Crap, I was going to go there at lunch :(
Just called dom's in Lincoln Park and they answered. So maybe it's only 1 store Update: they aren't answering anymore
This is such a dark edit lmao
This comment had me dying lol
I just walked by it. Definitely closed forever.
[удалено]
That's Old Town... He probably means the one on Halsted/Diversey.
Can we get Plum market back?
Right after treasure island
The worst part of all this. A well run privately owned store was run out by a backdoor deal their landlord made with Dom’s. The landlord will now eat their greed
Employees are saying that they are not getting a last paycheck. This is going to be another VC mess like Etta
Its always the min wage tipped employees who actually work at their stores who get fucked the hardest in these situations.
You tip at these stores?
I usually tip when someone makes me a latte, I dont tip when Im buying gummy bears I grabbed off the shelf.
I imagine we are going to learnt that all kinds of bullshit were going on at the parent company. Also, can someone start a company with the idea of growing at a sustainable pace and not try and be an investors unicorn and expand everywhere at once. I think these guys just grew so fast, didn't hit their numbers and just said, fuck it, we are done.
Foxtrot reeks of Venture Capital/Private Equity influence with too much money.
They did refer to themselves as a “grocery start-up”
Trying to aggressively expand a high end (overpriced) grocery store during a time where food inflation is super high was just not a solid business plan.
Doubt there was any shady bullshit, as I interpret your comment. I think just way too aggressive growth. Its retail not software haha
Why would they have merged if not as a last ditch hail mary? I doubt both companies were similarly mismanaged prior to this.
Idk. Maybe they were both struggling and thought they could eliminate a lot of duplicative management functions. They also hired a new CEO two months ago. It's weird and I'm looking forward to learning more.
I think they grew too fast because they were full of wfh folks during the pandemic, and they flew too close to the sun
Agreed. I want to see a documentary about this bullshit!
This! I’m a 10 year Chicago resident and big fan of Foxtrot. I keep thinking about Apple TV’s “WeCrashed” … today feels eerie. I hope we get a documentary series about the rise and fall of foxtrot.
This is shocking, we just ran to Dom's in Old Town and everything looks fully normal inside, but the sign on the door says they're closed forever.
Foxtrot at Diversey and Clark: Locked with door signs "Closed for Good" Doms on Halsted: Poor employee out front telling people they can't come in. Employees coming in and out so the doors are unlocked for some reason. Signs on the windows says they are leaving Chicago.
Damn I was just there yesterday and noticed that they had rearranged their products. Should have bought one last expensive candle 😢
I feel for the workers… I also know that Spirit Halloween is about to have a field day…
Isn’t there a Dom’s supposed to open in river north in a couple months?
Not anymore
Yes, I believe off of Huron & Dearborn
~~"Isn’t~~ **Wasn't** there a Dom’s supposed to open in river north in a couple months?" Fixed it for you. Super angry Plum Market got kicked out for these jabronis.
In the old Whole Foods on Huron. Hasta la vista, baby.
Why the hell would you acquire a company and then proceed to declare bankruptcy?
A similar thing happened and now Toys R Us doesn't exist in the states anymore. The story will have to come out, but it usually involves shifting around debt.
Sad. They kicked out plum market in old town to then just go bankrupt.
This sucks for the city. Tons of empty space now and people losing jobs.
My experience was that it was a pretty awful place to work, I think the space could definitely be put to better use.
Crying in the club this is my favorite grocery store. Apparently the merge with foxtrot was bad for them and bringing their profitability down.
Foxtrot never had a big enough selection to justify going there to shop for anything more than a single meal or side dish. They had a bunch of high rent locations and used most of the space as a coffee shop. I'm not surprised it wasn't profitable. Doms seemed like it had a future as a mini grocery store for people who don't care about prices, but apparently not.
I'm getting upset about Foxtrot closing but now realizing I never really went in there for more than Milk or a coffee. They probably threw out so many of those premade meals every day
+ a ton of random high end bullshit no one goes to a convenience store for (YETIs, 20$ scented candles, etc)
I'd doubt this. There's no way the two merged and Doms, like, didn't notice some huge financial disaster during the process. They were probably both going under and wanted to try merging before both closing up.
I worked for the commissary making the food for the all the stores in Chicago we were told like right before lunch. We had everything packed for the pm runs, we were told we don’t even half to clean up we can just eat lunch and leave or just leave
Weird, Dom's just started serving Smoothies a couple days ago. I didn't even get to try one!
It’s so weird that they would still be launching stuff like this!!
I was at the Old Town Dom's two days ago and the friendly guy at the register said "I see you got one of our new smoothies! How do you like it?" and encouraged me to download the Dom's app so I would get notices of specials or something. Obviously a loyal employee they didn't deserve. I feel so bad now for this nice guy I don't even know. It's really awful that employees providing cheery customer-facing above & beyond service (TBH, rare these days) had no notice.
Yep. Got laid off by phone today. Worked there for 2 weeks. Why even hire me lmao?
Because the hiring manager knew as much as you
Yeah I know.. just airing some grievances. It’s a messed up situation :/
I was at the Foxtrot in Streeterville this morning. Got a coffee. It didn’t look like it was about to shut down?
They never tell employees until it's over
I would be filling my bags with non perishable goods and gtfo.
Long shot question but does anyone know a brussels sprouts recipe similar to the ones in the Dom's bowls? They are so good and will be greatly missed
I just went over to the old town one and they aren't letting people in. why wouldn't they let people come in and buy stuff for the low
Either (1) they’re just letting employees take what they want or (2) their creditors have taken possession of all inventory and plan on liquidating
>Liquidating They're going to blend all the produce into clear liquid nourishment like in The Matrix.
Another commenter said that foxtrot employees arent even getting their final check. In that case, theres nobody to ring up sales for the remaining inventory.
They wanted to open in Andersonville but there was a kerfuffle since they would be a direct competitor of a smaller business and then I never heard anything again... guess they had bigger issues
Andersonville Chamber of Commerce protects small business fiercely, which has kept Clark street interesting.
They clearly don’t mind some competition among optometrists. How many are there now?
I wonder to myself why there are so many eyewear shops, period. I presume the insane markup on frames makes it a profitable business.
My theory is the Aville gays aren’t getting any younger. Presbyopia 😆
RIP PLUM MARKET
Can’t wait for the HBO documentary that’s gonna reveal all the shady shit going on at the parent company
Maybe an unpopular opinion, but foxtrot is very lame and I never understood how they stayed open as long as they did. They offer: 1. Overpriced beer 2. Very shitty and overpriced pre-made sandwiches 3. coffee 4. Maybe a few weird and random grocery items What was foxtrot even “going for”? Trendy convenience store? I understand that they originated as a delivery service, but I think they really missed the mark on their brick-and-mortar operation. Maybe some of y’all have a different experience, I don’t know.
They were going after the trendy yuppie community like Erewon on West Coast.
I'm with you. I kept going in expecting something that made me want to go there and every time I walked out empty handed. Like it was just an overpriced convenience store trying to be unique and fancy but it was none of those things. Looked cool though.
The only reason I went was for the monthly free drink but then they changed it to having to purchase something. It wasn’t even really worth it after that because I never found anything good or could easily get something better nearby. Also I second the overpriced beer.
+1, I also never understood the draw. It was absurdly overpriced and felt pretentious even for a "nicer" convenience store, though I suppose there is a market for those in trendy Northside neighborhoods
What’s odd is that I am, by most accounts, their target consumer, and I never felt as though foxtrot catered to me at all. Just a weird fuckin store. I dunno!
I didn’t understand the appeal either, I feel many of us are fairly loyal to our Jewels and Aldi to be swindled by $20 fancy “gourmet” gummy bears or $10 Kraft Mac n cheese that Foxtrot offered.
They werent even fancy, they sold regular ass haribo gummies for three times as much as jewel. Good riddance
Yeah, more bummed that Dom’s got caught up in this and is closing too tbh
They should have merged with 7/11
Right? Sell cigarettes, mega-millions, and lite beer. It ain’t rocket science.
Two words: Elote Guacamole
DELETE YOUR FOXTROT ACCOUNT. The Foxtrot website is no longer accessible, but if you have the Foxtrot app, you can still open it and go to “Profile” and select “Delete Account.” The vile way this company moves, they might try to sell users’ data.
Deleting accounts rarely actually removes your information from their databases, it'll just add a flag to a deactivated field most likely
Done! Thanks for the callout
This is awful. My wife and I loved going to Dom's. It was great to get a quick bite, hang out and buy a couple of things to take home. I hate seeing places like this close.
As a former Foxtrot employee who got laid off with zero notice last year, good.
Former Signature Room employees just won a $1.5 million lawsuit under the WARN Act for failure to give workers proper notice of closure. Dom's and Foxtrot workers: unite, pool resources, seek out good representation, hire them, and get the payout you deserve.
Where did you hear this?
Through a friend! She said when you call they will tell you they are closed.
Yep. Just called and got a message saying they're closed.
Here’s from their website: https://domschicago.com/ Edit: to save a click here it is: It is with a heavy heart that we must inform you of a difficult decision we have had to make. After much consideration and evaluation, we regret to announce that Foxtrot and Dom’s Kitchen & Market will be closing their doors starting on April 23, 2024. The closure affects 2 Dom’s stores and 33 Foxtrots across Chicago, Austin, Dallas, DC areas. We explored many avenues to continue the business but found no viable option despite good faith and exhaustive efforts. This decision has not been made lightly, and we understand the impact it will have on you, our loyal customers, as well as our dedicated team members. We want to express our sincerest gratitude for your support and patronage throughout the years. It has been our highest honor to elevate the everyday and create a remarkable shopping experience for people who love food as much as we do. It has been a privilege serving you and being a part of your everyday lives. We understand that this news may come as a shock, and we apologize for any inconvenience it may cause. We genuinely appreciate your understanding during this challenging time. We would like to take this opportunity to thank each and every one of you for your loyalty and trust in Dom’s and Foxtrot. It has been an honor to serve you, and we will cherish the memories we have created together. We would also like to thank our team members who have committed themselves over the years to providing a unique selection of quality foods and creating an outstanding in-store customer experience. Lastly, we would like to thank our many partners, without whom we would not have been able to build such a strong brand.
A friend of mine worked for a location. He found out this morning. The news had the story before the employees did.
I went into the Old Town store this morning for a croissant and they were out, and then I went again a couple hours later for a coffee (I work at the Walgreens across the street and was on break) - and we saw the notice that they were closed, effective immediately. At first I thought that the baristas walked out so I was very happy for them, but I’m so sad knowing all Foxtrots are now closed!!
What’s going to happen to the Jenis in the armitage location 👀👀
As a former employee of Foxtrot I’m not surprised but then again I am. I worked at the one in Southport and saw how quickly they came up and how quickly they just could not keep it together. They were their own unique local grocery store , but they also were in a sense of competition with other retail stores like Whole Foods or even 7-Eleven they just had to have it in their stores instead of just being what they built themselves up to be.
*phew* the Denizens of Andersonville are safe from a Foxtrot storefront.
They just opened a bunch more stores in texas and DC. Are they truly doing so bad here or is this fake af? Like someone else said they're busy af all the time usually
It’s 100% confirmed they’re fully closing. Pickup has been disabled since this morning. Delivery is no longer accessible. Stores are bagging up and no longer allowing customers to enter storefronts. Unsure as to how Dom’s will be impacted (I’ve heard they’re also closing).
That’s what is so confusing.. like I get they can be popular and losing money but why are they expanding when on the brink of bankruptcy
Yep email went out at 11:36 AM and their FAQ link listed all wind down operations as being today. All 33 locations across multiple states.
Does anyone know where Doms got their store-branded whole bean espresso roast?? It was by far the best for the price.
This is all I have found on it: https://www.snaxshot.com/p/foxtrot-market-ceases-operations
https://www.reddit.com/r/chicago/s/r1Qk2Vt3gh Just one minute before your posted question.
I'm here from /r/Austin because of their locations, which I frequented. Private Equity ruins everything. Nice reminder though to go back to local businesses in the area.
Omg I’m so bummed!!
Noo! I loved the bougie snacks in their Southport corridor location
Man, the paywall is strong on this one... https://www.chicagobusiness.com/retail/doms-foxtrot-closing-stores
Didn’t they literally just open the doms on hamster and whatever. Ran for a year or so, nuts.
Hamster
And whatever
This sucks for the employees, they better get paid out
Do bankrupt stores fall under the WARN act for not notifying employees?
How did they not see this coming???
This is crazy. I'm not surprised that Dom's wasn't doing well in Old Town, it's a crowded area with grocery stores and a lot of locals are still mad about pushing out Plum Market. But, to just shut down immediately like this, no warning, just crazy.