Payless ShoeSource to start liquidation sales at stores

(Reuters) - U.S. discount retailer Payless ShoeSource Inc said on Friday it would begin going-out-of-business sales at its U.S. and Puerto Rico stores on Feb. 17 and wind down its e-commerce operations. Payless expects all stores to remain open until at least the end of March and the majority will remain open until May, a company spokeswoman said in an email statement. Reuters reported on Thursday that the company was planning to close all of its nearly 2,300 stores when it files for bankruptcy later this month for the second time in as many years. "This process does not affect the company's franchise operations or its Latin American stores, which remain open for business as usual," the spokeswoman said. (Reporting by Saumya Sibi Joseph in Bengaluru)