The company had seen the two futuristic shoe plants in Germany and the U.S. as a way to "reinvent manufacturing."
A Chapter 11 filing would be the second for the shoe retailer in less than two years amid heavy debt and online competition.
Same-store sales rose only 0.5% but the company remains confident it will deliver stronger growth in the second half of 2018.
After a tough Q3, a 47% surge in international sales helped revenue beat estimates in Q4 but North America showed another decline.
The struggling retailer's key metrics all declined in Q3 but Wall Street was expecting a "much more severe fall from grace."
The company's "days of glory, when it would post double-digit uplifts in sales, are over," one analyst says.
The footwear chain plans to significantly reduce its store count as it focuses on its wholesale and e-commerce channels.
The footwear retailer says Q2 earnings will come in much lower than expected as it adopts an anti-takeover "poison pill."
The company's CEO faults its suppliers for its Q2 results, saying there was "limited availability of innovative new products in the market."
