Filene's Basement, which got its start in 1908 as a bargain basement retailer in Boston's Downtown Crossing, is shuttering its Framingham location for the second time in a decade.

The Burlington-based off-price chain plans to close the store on Feb. 28 as well as 10 other of its 36 locations outside of New England.

The Framingham store has been running a "sale on everything" since Dec. 26, said Ron Stiriti, manager of the 5-year-old location.

"They were doing that because it was a store that wasn't really showing very much profit, and I believe they were going to try to renegotiate the rent," he said.

Officials at Retail Ventures Inc., the Columbus, Ohio, company that bought Filene's Basement in 2000, could not be reached for comment.

Filene's Basement previously operated another Framingham store, also on Route 30 in the former Framingham Mall, that closed in 1999 after a bankruptcy filing. The company, weighted down under $150 million in debt, slimmed down from 53 stores to just under 20 at the time.

The Basement's flagship Boston store in Downtown Crossing closed in 2007 as part of a $700 million redevelopment of the Filene's building. Famous for its automatic markdown system, the store was expected to reopen this year, but financing problems have stalled the mixed-use project.

Another Filene's Basement store opened on Boylston Street in 2006, and the twice-annual "Running of the Brides" sale was relocated to the Hynes Convention Center.

Originally published by By DONNA GOODISON.

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