Major department store chain Sogo Co. on Thursday shut down three of its 27 retail outlets in Japan and let two of the three launch bankruptcy proceedings with local courts, the company said.
The closed stores are in the city of Nagano, Kisarazu in Chiba Prefecture, and Tama in outlying Tokyo.
The operators of the Nagano and Kisarazu outlets -- Nagano Sogo and Kisarazu Sogo -- filed for bankruptcy with local courts Thursday morning, according to Teikoku Databank Ltd., a private credit research agency.