By ROB BUSWEILER Free Press Staff
All three Boater's World locations in the Florida Keys sprung a surprise sale on the public last weekend.
This sale appears to portend doom for the chain, which has 129 stores throughout the country. The nautical supply store chain has indicated it will be going out of business, and taking its locations in Key Largo, Marathon and Key West down with it. All three locations now sport bright "going out of business" signs.
Jackie Collins, manager of the Marathon location, said corporate offices told her of the plans late last week.
"We are supposed to be open until June," she told the Free Press on Monday. "We have a warehouse full of inventory."
According to Collins, the Marathon location has six employees, and the liquidation process had already started.
Officials from Ritz Camera Centers, the parent company of Boater's World, declined to comment on Monday. Richard L. Kaye, vice president of Hilco Merchant Resources, the Chicago-based company handling the liquidation, said a bankruptcy court filing led to the impending closing of all of the Boater's World stores.
"The store closing process began this weekend," Kaye told the Free Press on Monday.
According to Kaye, the current objective is for all of the Boater's World locations to sell off inventory until the buildings are in a "broom swept" condition. Kaye added that the individual store's closing date is based on when that location runs out of inventory.
As a result, the liquidation will continue until all the products are moved. Boater's World sells a variety of boating and fishing gear in addition to various nautical accessories and supplies.
Kaye said the local employees will remain on staff until the individual stores close down. He added that representatives from Hilco will be on hand to steer the liquidation process and help train employees in how to work in that environment.
"We do take control of the stores," Kaye said.
A press release put out by Hilco last week notes that the entire inventory is on sale.
Boater's World has 34 locations in Florida."
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