The children's boutique chain Littles has gone dark across the Triangle, with its Cary, Raleigh and Burlington locations shuttered and its owner, Christine Wells, facing a growing pile of unpaid debts to former employees, customers, vendors and contractors. Court records show a federal judge recently entered a default judgment of more than $184,000 against the business and Wells over unpaid merchandise, and that's just one of several legal actions now stacking up.
According to ABC11, Olivia Richmond, who worked at Littles of Burlington, received her first paycheck but never got her second, leaving her owed about $1,000. Richmond told the station that Wells attributed the payment delays to technical problems before eventually stopping responding to her messages altogether. Richmond wasn't alone — the station reports that other contractors and service providers also sought payment from Littles without success.
Customer Ashton Choros had a similar experience after ordering a Maileg dollhouse from Littles of Cary and paying $375 by credit card, per the same ABC11 account. She says she never received the dollhouse; Wells told her it was being shipped and later said she had issued a refund, but Choros says she never found that refund in her bank statements and ultimately disputed the charge with her credit card company.
Vendors Left Holding Unpaid Inventory
The unpaid bills extend well beyond individual customers. A Las Vegas-based baby clothing vendor shipped roughly $2,500 in merchandise to Littles that was never paid for, the station reports. A separate children's clothing company sued Wells and Littles of Cary, alleging the business owed more than $188,000 for unpaid merchandise — a case that ended with a judge entering a default judgment for $184,242.23 in damages plus interest after Wells reportedly missed her deadline to respond, according to court records cited by ABC11.
That default judgment traces back to California apparel company Rylee + Cru, which alleged in court filings that electronic credit card payments routinely failed and that goods were taken without payment, according to INDY Week. The outlet's reporting adds further texture to Wells's financial history: before opening Littles of Cary in February 2025, she already carried two felony convictions for financial crimes, multiple unpaid civil court judgments, and a federal tax lien exceeding $63,000.
A Pattern That Predates the Storefronts
INDY Week's investigation found that vendor payment disputes surfaced almost immediately after the Cary flagship's grand opening. In April 2025, an Atlanta-based apparel showroom representative filed a formal complaint with the North Carolina Department of Justice alleging that Littles of Cary bounced electronic payments for insufficient funds and failed to pay vendors, including $1,788.39 owed to children's brand Terry Tots.
Contractors weren't spared either. On June 10, 2026, Carolina Design & Construction sued Wells over unpaid build-out work at the Raleigh boutique, eventually winning a $32,336.48 default judgment and naming building owner Columbia Village District LLC to enforce a property lien — a separate contractor judgment ABC11 also confirmed exceeded $30,000. That same day, records show Wells registered a new entity, Littles of Kiawah LLC, with South Carolina corporate authorities, listing an office address on Kiawah Island, even as the Raleigh lawsuit was being filed.
Expansion Continued as Debts Piled Up
Littles expanded fast. Within 18 months of its February 2025 launch in Cary, the chain opened in Raleigh's Village District in February 2026 and in Burlington in July 2026, while also registering corporate entities for planned locations in Greensboro and South Carolina, per reporting referenced by a podcast covering the chain's collapse. By late August 2026, all three North Carolina storefronts had shuttered, and the business shut down its website and social media channels.
More lenders are now chasing the money. Financial technology provider 8fig sued Littles of Cary in February 2026; the case involved an alleged debt of $30,968.80 and a February 19, 2026 settlement, INDY Week reported.
What Wells Has Said, and Where Complaints Can Go
Wells told ABC11 she wanted the opportunity to provide her side and accurate information, and that she was consulting with an attorney, adding that some of the issues involve ongoing legal matters. The station also reports that ABC11 could not confirm whether a store had actually opened under the Littles of Kiawah LLC name.
The North Carolina Attorney General's Office has received three complaints involving Wells and her Littles stores and says it is looking into them, according to ABC11's reporting. The office is encouraging affected customers to file complaints of their own. North Carolina law prohibits unfair or deceptive acts. Workers owed wages can file complaints with the North Carolina Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Bureau. Unresolved Littles customers can contact the North Carolina Attorney General's Office to file a consumer complaint.
