Iconic Retailer City Sports Files For Bankruptcy, Plans To Close Or Sell Remaining Stores

(Thomas Dishaw)  Another iconic mom and pop retailer files for bankruptcy. Boston-based City Sports plans to close or sell all remaining stores according to this Boston.com report:

Boston-based sporting goods retailer City Sports filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Monday and plans to shutter eight of its 26 locations before selling or liquidating the rest.

“We have arranged financing for reorganization and intend to emerge from this process a much healthier company, better positioned for long-term success,” Marty Hanaka, the company’s CEO, said in a statement.

City Sports, which opened its first store on Massachusetts Avenue in Boston in 1983, has yet to announce which stores will be eliminated and when those closures will take place. However, a company spokeswoman told The Boston Globethe retailer does not intend to close any of the nine Boston-area stores. The company estimates that the reorganization process will take between one and three months, according to a release.

Since the spring of 2014, the company has struggled financially and tried to save money by cutting store hours, shrinking its workforce, and slowing delivery time, according to The Wall Street Journal . Still, City Sports could not negotiate better rent deals with its landlords, leading it to file for bankruptcy.

The company currently owes Nike USA Inc., Under Armour, Asics, and Patagonia more than $1 million each, the Globereported.

City Sports hopes to sell the remaining stores by October 30, and says several buyers have expressed interest in them. Until then, the company will continue to operate its remaining stores and online business as usual.

“Our stores remain stocked with the same high-quality products, and we will continue to honor gift cards and returns on merchandise purchased prior to the filing,” Hanaka said. “Our team is focused on developing a reorganization plan and running the business during this time of transition.”