Elder-Beerman parent company says it's talking to possible buyers

» TRENDING BUSINESS NEWS: LIST: Bon-Ton announces store closing locations

The company and its subsidiaries filed voluntary petitions for a court-supervised financial restructuring under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware in early February. A vendor group still has the option of buying 210 stores still open after the planned closures of nearly 50 stores this spring.

No local stores were included in the round of closures announced earlier this year. Only one store in Ohio was impacted. However, Bon-Ton could also reduce the number of distribution centers from three to two, shutting down its facility in Fairborn.

Elder-Beerman has a deep-rooted presence in the Miami Valley — and it can be traced back to another store, Boston Dry Goods, in 1883. The Boston Dry Goods store was opened by Thomas Elder, William Hunter, Jr. and Russell Johnston on East Third Street in the early 1880s. It sold texiles, clothing and groceries, and it later became the Elder & Johnston Co.

» RELATED: New Elder-Beerman shops opening in Dayton

In 1962, Dayton businessman Arthur Beerman, who had opened two Beermans for Bargains junior department stores in 1950, merged his store with the Elder & Johnston Co. During the 1960s the Elder-Beerman Co. opened numerous department stores in the region, including Hamilton and Richmond, Ind.

The company continued to expand, acquiring department stores in Michigan, Illinois and Kentucky. In 1993, the 50th store opened at the Mall at Fairfield Commons in Beavercreek. In 2003, Elder-Beerman was acquired by Bon-Ton Stores, Inc.

FIVE FAST BUSINESS READS

• No retail apocalypse for these companies: 5 retailers opening stores in 2018

• Franco's Ristorante Italiano owner dies

• Former DP&L power plants to lay off 370 workers in Ohio

• Amazon looking to buy abandoned Toys 'R' Us storefronts

• Check out this $1 million home for sale in Clearcreek Twp.