After its sudden closure in April, Foxtrot is reported to be gearing up to reopen some locations, according to CBS News.
The outlet confirmed that the chain’s Gold Coast and Old Town stores will reopen, with more openings to be announced in the future. Foxtrot founder Mike LaVitola has made known his plans to reopen several other Chicago stores, in addition to locations in Dallas and Austin, Texas.
The Foxtrot/Dom’s Story
On April 23, Outfox Hospitality — the combined efforts of Foxtrot and Dom’s Kitchen & Market — suddenly shuttered all of its 35 locations, most of which were located in the Chicago area.
Outfox Hospitality had been formed just six months prior to the announcement of the store closings, and filed for bankruptcy a month later.
“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 company stated at the time of the announcement. “We explored many avenues to continue the business but found no viable option despite good faith and exhaustive efforts.”
Outfox Hospitality then sold its assets to Further Point Enterprises for $2.2 million at a May auction. The assets included 33 Foxtrot stores and two Dom’s Kitchen & Market locations.
Following the abrupt closure, employees from both Foxtrot and Dom’s filed lawsuits against the companies for allegedly violating federal and state Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Acts by not giving employees prior notice about the layoffs and neglecting to offer proper severance pay.
The laws require employers to provide at least 60 days’ notice before mass layoffs, CBS News reported.
The Path Forward
To reopen the Foxtrot locations, LaVitola started a new business to get the chain back up and running. As of now, LaVitola has not shared if his new venture is being launched in conjunction with Further Point Enterprises.
The chain shared a cryptic post on Instagram, with a caption that simply read, “A new Foxtrot with some old friends. Coming soon.”
