DISTRESSED DAILY: Another Second-Wave Worry Is Retail Bankruptcy

A second wave of bankruptcies could rock the retail sector later this year.

Dozens of household names like J.C. Penney and Brooks Brothers filed for bankruptcy in 2020. It’s been quiet so far this year, but the pandemic’s disruption hasn’t been fully absorbed, said Christa Hart, a senior managing director at FTI Consulting.

“I think we’ll have a second wave” of filings, Hart said in an interview, adding that retail bankruptcies didn’t peak until two years after the great recession.

No one is certain how shoppers will behave when the pandemic recedes. New habits like working from ...