By John Schwing

WESTPORT — A centerpiece of downtown’s retail revival since the COVID pandemic — Oka furniture at 44 Main St. — has apparently closed abruptly amid financial woes suffered by the brand’s parent company.

Oka’s U.S. operations filed for bankruptcy last week “with immediate effect,” according to several national news outlets, while the British-based parent company is undergoing restructuring.

In addition to the Westport store — which opened in December 2022 at the site of the former Klein’s and Banana Republic stores — Oka’s bankruptcy forced the closure of its only other U.S. stores in Dallas and Houston.

The local Oka store was closed Wednesday morning past its posted 10 a.m. opening time, and its website appears to have been almost entirely disabled, displaying the message, “We Will Be Back Soon,” without further explanation.

There were no signs in the store’s windows giving any indication as to the status of the business.

Calls and emails by the Westport Journal to both local and national Oka representatives went unanswered Wednesday morning.

Workers at several stores nearby on Main Street said that Oka appears to have closed suddenly last week, and that store employees were told they no longer had jobs without warning.

It also was not immediately clear the status of pending orders or merchandise returns for Oka customers.

Oka was the first business to take advantage of a zoning regulation approved by the Planning and Zoning Commission in February 2022 that allows retailers to occupy more than 10,000 square feet on Main Street.

The Main Street site, best known as the decades-long home of Klein’s department store, was reported to be nearly 14,000 square feet, the applicant told the P&Z at the time a special permit was granted for Oka.

— With reporting by Gretchen Webster