Fred's Inc. (stylized in all caps) was a retail store chain headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, operating in 15 states in the southeastern United States. As of June, 2019 Fred's operated 396 locations, of which 155 were pharmacies, and the remainder discount general merchandise stores. In July 2019 Fred's announced 129 pending store closures, following which it would have 80 retail stores and 166 pharmacies remaining. This followed earlier store closing announcements in April and June 2019.
On September 9, 2019 Fred's announced that it was seeking liquidation under Chapter 11 of the US Bankruptcy Code and would close all remaining locations and liquidate all remaining merchandise and fixtures.[3]
History
Brothers Paul, Victor, and Charles Baddour opened a dry-goods store named Good Luck in Coldwater, Mississippi, in 1947. Paul later incorporated the company as Baddour, Inc. As the chain expanded throughout the Southeast, he began naming the stores Fred's Dollar Stores after his older brother, Fred. In 1953, Fred's moved its corporate headquarters to Memphis, Tennessee.
Fred's primarily competed against national, deep-discount chains Dollar General, Family Dollar, and Dollar Tree