Posted on 10/17/2008 8:49:24 PM PDT by Santa Fe_Conservative
Ailing department store chain Mervyns LLC, which had been operating for almost five decades, has become the latest merchant headed for extinction.
The retailer, 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. The Hayward, Calif.-based chain said liquidation sales during the holiday season were the best way to maximize value for the company's creditors after exhausting all its options, including the sale of the company.
It also cited a fierce 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 said it plans to pursue the liquidation under the Chapter 11 bankruptcy code, a move that typically allows companies to retain more control over the selling off of assets. In a Chapter 7 filing, the court would immediately appoint a trustee to take over the case. The company said it intends to retain an outside professional services firm to assist in the liquidation sales of inventory.
"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, in a statement. "We are confident that the deep discounts available through going out of business sales will drive significant traffic in our stores."
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
i liked them.
but i got tired of arriving to the men’s underwear
and nothing on the shelf my size.
and, i got tired of walking on clothes on the floor.
so, i quit buying there.
Believed the Presidential polls and saw no hope...
Same here. I used to buy almost all my clothes from their Colorado stores. In fact, Mervyn's jeans were the best fitting jeans I owned. The Colorado stores have long since closed and I figured the whole chain went under until I saw a store here In San Diego where I recently moved.
Oh well. I've grown partial to Old Navy for casual wear.
Another retailer out of business. If the trends towards bigger stores and bigger chains continue, there might be just a few national stores, such as Wal-Mart and Sears, remaining. Many local department store chains have either merged or gone out of business in recent years. I can think of a number of them from around the country : Woodward and Lothrop, Hecht Company, Filene’s, Dayton-Hudson, Marshall Field, Bon-Marche, The Broadway, Robinson’s, Bullock’s, Buffum’s, Joseph Horne..........
All of these either went out of business or were acquired and merged into larger companies. It’s a trend of the times. Any chain store that is not national in scope and large in size has trouble competing in this environment.
I always liked Mervyn’s too. They’ve been a little run down (messy and understaffed) in the last couple of years, though. Too bad. I used to work for Montgomery Ward back in the day. Yet when I first joined, the old-timers used to revel about the “good old days” when it was the Fair Store.
First Mothers Cookies now this.
It’s all over.
How old is this story? I thought they went under two years ago.
They pulled out of Michigan at least two years ago.
Didn’t know they were still around.
I liked them in the 80’s and 90’s. But they became like a Target or a....
Thinning of the herd, is all.
Used to shop there...
Then, I had to step over boxes of stuff on the floor...
Then, I needed to learn Spanish to talk to anyone....
Then, I said - if I want this, I can go to Tijuana.
Buh bye.
Man, our family liked “Monkey Ward’s”. I just gave away an old Montgomery Ward’s refrigerator I had that still worked great. In the TV room, I still have a living room set with a sofa bed from them, as well.
Ah, the good old days!
I often went shopping with my mom at The Broadway, Robinson’s, Bullock’s, and Buffum’s. It was always a special event and the service was excellent. You felt special when you shopped there.
I’ve been telling friends for two years that Mervyns was doomed. They adopted the middle of the store cash register system and there were no employees around to help anyone in the departments. It makes for a miserable shopping experience. Penny’s is doing the same thing. I refuse to shop at either of them. If I’m going to spend money, I might as well enjoy the experience!
Don’t worry, 0bama’s tax policies will bring back the small stores. Those that do under 250k per year!
I have this thought that if the downturn is severe we could come out at the other end of it as the United States of Wal-Mart, sponsored by JP Morgan-Chase.
Same thing I was going to say. The Mervyn’s near me (in CA) is always a complete disaster. It’s like shopping at Ross or TJ Maxx. I wondered how they could possibly stay operating — guess now I know.
“Worst customer service of any large chain.”
I don’t know from Mervyns but my game plan is that when I decide I want something (underwear, jean, camera, dvd, etc.) I will give the local brick-and-mortar store a chance. If they don’t have it, or don’t seem eager to sell it to me, I order it online.
Bailout Mervyns!
Dayton-Hudson still exists, they changed their name to their most successful asset (Target) but the company still exists. And recently sold Mervyns to investor. Seems to have worked out for Target.
This will be the third time the Mervyns in central Tucson goes dark. Wonder if somebody will actually take it over this time or if it will wait for the next resurrection.
I heard Linen ‘n Things is going out of business too.
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