Battered chain says it will close all 149 of its remaining stores
NEW YORK - Ailing department store chain Mervyns LLC, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in July, said Friday that it plans to begin liquidation sales at its remaining 149 stores and wind down its business.
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The Hayward, Calif.-based chain said in a statement that after completing a thorough analysis of all available options, including a sale of the company, the board determined that holding liquidation sales during the holiday season was the best way to maximize value for the company's creditors. It also cited a challenging retail environment and declining liquidity as factors forcing the company's liquidation. Mervyns now operates mainly in California and has seen its sales drop further as the state is among the hardest hit by the real estate slump.
Mervyns plans to pursue the liquidation under the Chapter 11 bankruptcy code, which typically allows companies to retain more control over the selling off of assets. The company said it intends to retain an outside professional services firm to assist in the liquidation sales of inventory.
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"We are disappointed with this outcome but the company's declining liquidity position and the extremely challenging retail environment, together with the fact that we have exhausted all other possibilities, requires that we take this action," said John Goodman, chief executive of Mervyns. "We are confident that the deep discounts available through going out of business sales will drive significant traffic in our stores."
Mervyns' announcement marks the latest retail obituary and represents yet another blow to the nation's malls, which are grappling with increasing vacancy rates in a deteriorating economic environment. On Tuesday, specialty retailer Linens 'n Things, which filed for bankruptcy protection in May, announced it will begin liquidation sales at its stores as early as this week after failing to find a buyer that wanted to operate the company.
Gadget retailer Sharper Image Corp., which filed for bankruptcy in February and eventually liquidated its stores, is seeking a new life as a wholesaler. It announced on Monday it signed a $540 million licensing agreement with manufacturer HoMedics to create gadgets to be sold in the U.S. and elsewhere.
The big problem with Mervyns, a 59-year-old chain, was that it had been squeezed between high-end department stores and discounters like Wal-Mart Stores Inc. Before its bankruptcy filing, Mervyns had been shuttering stores and leaving states such as Oregon and Washington since 2005, after a consortium of private equity players including Sun Capital Partners Inc. bought Mervyns from Target Corp. for $1.2 billion.
Remember the "Franchise Wars" mentioned in Demolition Man? Soon, all restaurants will be Taco Bell. And one guess on what the lone remaining store will be. Here's a clue: there will be more elderly and semi-retarded greeters employed by this company after the Franchise Wars are over than currently live in the state of Wisconsin.
I fear you're right, Newsbot. I can't help but think that if some of these stores were to NOT try to compete with Wal-Mart by carrying quality merchandise and having competent salespeople, they could stand out. But everyone cuts their workforce, hires morons still in high school, and starts carrying shit. If you're going to get shit from an asshole anyway, why pay more than Wal-Mart price?
Remember when Circuit City stood above Best Buy because the people knew what they were doing? Then they took away commission, then replaced them with obnoxious kids. And now they're in trouble. Because why go to a store with shit selection if you're dealing with dumbasses anyway?
*--For behavior unbecoming anyone, perpetrated in real time over an extended--AH, FUCK IT! MORE MALIBU, BITCHES!!
BY 2029, THE CORPORATION FORMERLY KNOWN AS WALMART IS PRETTY MUCH A RETAIL VERSION OF THE POST OFFICE. ALL YOUR GOODS AND SERVICES, INCLUDING AUTO MAINTENANCE, GROCERIES, AND HEALTH CARE WILL BE PROVIDED BY THE FEDERAL AUTONOMOUS RETAIL TRIFECTA, A QUASI GOVERNMENTAL AUTHORITY IN CHARGE OF SELLING THINGS TO ALL AMERICANS AT A "FAIR PRICE".
AND YES, THAT IS A SCARY AS IT SEEMS IN YOUR IMAGINATION
NO HANDLEBARS HAN SHOT. FIRST! PERIOD. NO HANDLEBARS MORE COWBELL! NO HANDLEBARS GO FUCK YOURSELF™
that's too bad. there's this really hot brunette who works at the mervyn's at the mall here. she kind of looks like winona ryder except she's not because then she would've gotten fired for shoplifting. she always wears those tops that are cut low in the front and i'll ask her to get the change from the bottom of the cash register and she bends over and i can see in her shirt and then when she's not looking i reach out and pinch her titties. and she giggles. i bet you can't figure out at what point i started making this shit up can you?
