Company expresses substantial doubt about its ability to continue
of ConsumerAffairs
Theres trouble in retail land. About the last place you can rent a DVD is shutting down while discount chain Big Lots plans to close as many as 40 locations, which is more than three times the number of stores that it will open this year.
In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Big Lots showed a loss of $205 million for the 13 weeks that ended May 4. The company also said it expects there will be even more operating losses and it cited "substantial doubt" about its ability to continue as a going concern.
Company CEO Bruce Thorn has said Big Lots has struggled with maintaining sales "due largely to a continued pullback in consumer spending by our core customers, particularly in high ticket discretionary items."
At least one Big Lots customer, Starlett, of Jersey City, N.J., likes Big Lots high ticket discretionary items but tells ConsumerAffairs theyre hard to find at her store.
Big Lots Jersey City, always advertises furniture, such as recliners and sofas, that they never stock in this stores location, Starlett wrote in a review. First, I wanted to purchase two white recliners that [were] priced at $199, there was no stock..and [I] couldn't buy the floor model which was still new.
But Big Lots customers have a lot in common with dollar store shoppers, who have also cut back on purchases in recent months. Dollar Tree, parent company of Family Dollar, announced earlier this year it would close hundreds of under-performing Family Dollar stores.
Good luck renting a DVD now
Meanwhile, Redbox which rents DVDs from kiosks is going out of business, a victim of the bankruptcy of its parent company Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment. The company operates a network of 24,000 kiosks, mostly outside supermarkets and other high-traffic retail locations.
Lawyers for the parent company told a bankruptcy court this week the company plans to move ahead with liquidation proceedings because the company has been unable to arrange financing.
Redbox is closing up shop amid renewed interest in DVDs and other physical media. As we reported in June, younger consumers are rediscovering DVDs.
I suspect it stems from the fact that DVD players are still widely available and that with a DVD, you own the content for life, Josh Amishav, CEO at Breachsense, told ConsumerAffairs.
Photo Credit: Consumer Affairs News Department Images
Posted: 2024-07-12 12:41:02
