End of an era for awkward and embarrassing family photos as company behind portrait studios at Sears and Wal-Mart goes out of business

Portrait studios at Sears and Wal-Mart stores - the scenes of many family photos - have unexpectedly closed after operator CPI Corp. announced that it had gone out of business.

More than 2,000 outlets have shut, leaving some laid-off workers scrambling - without pay - to make good on existing customers' orders.

St. Louis-based CPI Corp., called Thursday's announcement 'sad' in a two-paragraph statement on its website and insisted that it was trying to fulfill as many orders as possible. Customers with questions were urged to contact their local store.

Have you got any family photos taken at a portrait studio at Sears or Wal-Mart that you'd like to share? Email your pictures to mailonlinepictures@dailymail.co.uk

Portrait studios at Sears and Wal-Mart have unexpectedly closed after their operator CPI Corp. went out of business

Happy Easter: This family celebrated the holidays one year with this photo of them all in Sears-branded shirts

CPI's website as of Friday was purged of everything but the statement. It was not immediately clear how many employees were affected.

As the popularity of digital photography cut into its sales, CPI revealed last month in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing it had received a fourth forbearance agreement from its lenders and that it had until Saturday to meet its loan obligations.

CPI said in mid-March that it owed $98.5 million, including unpaid principal of $76.1 million.

CPI had warned in earlier SEC filings that failing to buy more time from lenders could force it to liquidate, and the company last year hired an investment bank to explore a possible sell-off.

Last month, CPI's chief marketing officer and executive vice president resigned after a 7-year tenure.

Sears Holding Corp. said in an emailed statement Friday that it was working with CPI 'to ensure that it fulfills its outstanding orders and provides ordered pictures to our members and customers.'

CPI managed and operated Sears Portrait Studios as a licensed business, Sears said.

This photo of two sisters was taken in the early 90s at a Sears Portrait Studio

The popularity of digital photography has been blamed for the portrait studios going out of business

'We are currently exploring all options to potentially provide these services to our members and customers as soon as possible,' Sears said, expressing regret about any inconvenience.

But some suddenly displaced CPI employees, believing the company could wrongly foist the responsibility of filling outstanding customers' orders onto Wal-Mart and Sears, were hustling Friday trying to make good with the clients while absorbing the shock of losing their jobs and related benefits, including insurance coverage.

'There's almost no word to describe this. It's devastating,' said Jennifer McDowell, a three-year CPI employee who until Thursday managed a four-employee studio in a Wal-Mart in St. Charles, a St. Louis suburb.

More than 2,000 portrait outlets have shut, leaving some laid-off workers scrambling - without pay - to make good on existing customers' orders

'We gave so much for this company and worked so hard.'

McDowell, 34, hastily burned as many undelivered portrait packages as she could onto compact discs on Thursday. By Friday, she tried to spread the word to those customers that she'd be at a nearby pet store's parking lot Saturday with those CDs.

'There's a chance (CPI) was not going to make good on their promises to customers, and if they don't they make us look like liars,' McDowell, of Alton, Ill., said.