Bluestem, the parent company of one of Minnesota’s former retail greats, Fingerhut, is closing its Eden Prairie headquarters and laying off the remaining employees after slashing its workforce in February.
The company — known legally as BLST Operating Company, LLC — notified state officials Wednesday that 103 employees across various departments will be laid off in mid-November.
A Bluestem representative was unavailable for comment Thursday.
CEO Robert Warshauer called the moves a “reorganization” leading to permanent closure and layoffs in Eden Prairie in a letter to the state Department of Employment and Economic Development. His job is among those listed as being eliminated.
In August, Bluestem announced it would close its St. Cloud distribution center, resulting in 118 layoffs before the end of the year. Those layoffs will take place over two phases, beginning Oct. 26 and ending Nov. 14.
The company has also shut a distribution center in Georgia, laying off 160.
Fingerhut was once a giant in the mail-order catalog business. When the company started in 1948, it sold automobile seat covers but later evolved into a conglomeration of goods from closet organizers to gadgets.
The Minnesota-based retailer differentiated itself from other businesses by implementing a technique known as “hire purchase,” making monthly payments, similar to today’s “buy now, pay later” model.
The retailer changed hands several times, starting with Federated Department Stores — now Macy’s, Inc. — which acquired it in 1999 for $1.7 billion.
In 2002, businessman Tom Petters purchased the company for under $500 million. Petters, later convicted in one of the country’s largest Ponzi schemes, still held an 18% stake in Fingerhut when his empire collapsed.
Today, the company operates as Bluestem Group, Inc., which also owns catalog brands like Blair and Appleseed’s. Bluestem filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2020.