Most suppliers, however, have already shipped parts for that last batch and were counting on new orders.

A retailing bankruptcy is unusual when suppliers are still shipping their products.

Some suppliers are still shipping merchandise to Caldor, people close to the company said yesterday, though they have tightened their terms or begun insisting on payment upon delivery.

"The suppliers in Japan would not ship the product," explained Tom Robbins, Marantz's vice president of marketing and strategic planning.

Supply chains will operate far more efficiently because suppliers will ship only the products needed when and where they are needed.

Alexander's is seeking a delayed-payment plan for about $25 million in trade debt in an effort to coax wary suppliers and their financiers to ship spring merchandise.

One of Mr. Greenwald's first tasks here, as it was at Chrysler, was to persuade suppliers to ship and to get rid of surplus stock.

By restricting what can be sold to the United States, these agreements encourage foreign suppliers to ship higher-priced items.

Yesterday, several suppliers said they had received checks and were still shipping merchandise.

Only those suppliers that deposited checks and had them clear before the filing received payment for merchandise shipped in December.