Crescent Jewelers, the largest retail jewelry chain in the state of California, said Wednesday that it has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in order to reorganize the company and restructure its debt as part of its ongoing turnaround effort.

The Oakland, Calif., company filed a voluntary petition with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the Northern District of California. The company said in a statement it intends to conduct business as usual. In addition, it said that as in all Chapter 11 cases, post-petition obligations to vendors, employees and others will be honored and satisfied in the normal course of business.

Crescent said it intends to use the Chapter 11 process to restructure the indebtedness incurred over the prior five operating years and to position the company for continued growth and increased profitability. Over the past six months, Crescent said it has made significant operational improvements, working with turnaround specialist Alvarez & Marsal. A&M personnel will continue to serve as key officers of the company during the Chapter 11 case.

“This filing is a necessary step that will permit the company to complete its efforts to improve operations and profitability and to fix its balance sheet,” Randy Poe, president and COO of Crescent, said in a statement. “Our efforts have already resulted in improved sales and cash flow, higher customer satisfaction and retention rates, and improved associate productivity. We believe that when we emerge from these proceedings, our new capital structure, combined with the commitment of our management team and employees to execute our strategy, will finally be able to unlock Crescent’s tremendous potential.”

JCK