Jenny Craig is going out of business, with regional stores closing

The weight loss company Jenny Craig has abruptly announced it is shutting down, which will result in the closing of its company-owned and franchised stores in North America.

NBC News reported the company sent an email to its employees late Tuesday announcing that it was closing “due to its inability to secure additional financing.” Jenny Craig was acquired by the private equity firm H.I.G. Capital in 2019 and had more than 1,000 employees as of this week.

Within Connecticut, Jenny Craig operated stores in Branford, Danbury, Fairfield, Manchester, Orange, Simsbury and Stamford. In the Westchester/Hudson Valley region, its locations were in Eastchester, Hartsdale, Middletown, Nanuet and Poughkeepsie.

Jenny Craig was founded in 1983 with a weight loss program that provided special menus designed by nutritionists and chefs. At its peak, the company”™s marketing campaign featured celebrity spokespersons including Mariah Carey and the late Kirstie Alley.

A Jenny Craig spokesperson told NBC News that the company “is embarking on the next phase of our business to evolve with the changing landscape of today”™s consumers. Like many other companies, we”™re currently transitioning from a brick-and-mortar retail business to a customer-friendly, e-commerce driven model. We will have more details to share in the coming weeks as our plans are solidified.”

Photo by M.O. Stevens / Wikimedia Commons