Long time appliance chain shutters doors, files Chapter 11 bankruptcy
If you’re old enough to remember Howard’s Appliance in its heyday, you might be interested to know that the chain suddenly closed all of its Southern California locations and filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
And it’s on the heels of Black Friday, which left recent shoppers in a lurch.
“Despite our best efforts to overcome tariffs, declines in consumer spending and other macroeconomic challenges, we have made the difficult decision to file for bankruptcy and close our doors,” said David Goodrich of law firm Golden Goodrich in Costa Mesa. Southern California News Group. “This was not a decision taken lightly, but one that became necessary given the current economic landscape.”
This move was not only swift, but also took employees by surprise because there was only one day’s notice, with no prior public warning.
In addition, customers were told absolutely nothing, even those whose orders were already in place. Orange County Register.
“The notice signed by Howard’s general manager of logistics, Isaiah Padilla, states that the company has closed business operations effective December 6 due to ‘circumstances beyond our control,'” the publication reported.
The closure affects the company’s 17 locations in Southern California.
The sudden closure of stores caused a huge stir on social media; because some customers who order big ticket items from the chain may have difficulty receiving their purchases.
“My parent ordered a new line from Howard’s and this morning found they were all closed? They haven’t received the line yet and it looks like all the stores are closing starting tomorrow. My mom called four different stores and no one is picking up the phone.” one user wrote on Reddit..
Another Reddit user confirmed that the device chain was shut down.
“After reading this I rushed to their store in Tustin because we have had numerous problems since our order four months ago. We are still waiting on a few items. The lights are off, just a closed sign, and the hours have been erased from the window,” helloninterwebs3 wrote.
In the past, Howard’s Appliance closed its Upland, California store on September 16, 2020, due to weak sales, poor local retail conditions and a focus on investing in more suitable locations. Press release.
Read the original article pennlive.com.
