(Radio Iowa) – Six JOANN Fabrics and Crafts in Iowa are now among hundreds around the country targeted for closure. JOANN Fabrics, which is based in Ohio, filed for bankruptcy protection in January. The company had indicated it would keep its eight-hundred retail outlets open during the process, but has now identified 533 stores that may be closed immediately. The Joann stores in Ames, Ankeny, Council Bluffs, Iowa City, Mason City and Muscatine are on that list.

A company spokesperson told C-N-N this rightsizing is the company’s best path forward, but executives understand the closures will have a major impact on employees, customers and communities.

JOANN Fabrics was founded in 1943 and became the largest crafting supply retailer in the United States. The company went public in 2021, with shares sold on the NASDAQ stock market. It first filed for bankruptcy last March and announced a few weeks later it had become a private company again and would keep all its stores open.