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Month: September 2024

Kmart’s blue light fades to black with the shuttering of its last full-scale US store

Kmart’s blue light fades to black with the shuttering of its last full-scale US store

By ANNE D’INNOCENZIO, AP Retail Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — Attention, Kmart shoppers, the end is near!

The erstwhile retail giant renowned for its Blue Light Specials — featuring a flashing blue orb affixed to a pole enticing shoppers to a flash sale — is shuttering its last full-scale store in mainland United States.

The store, located in swank Bridgehampton, New York, on Long Island, is slated to close Oct. 20, according to Denise Rivera, an employee who answered the phone at the store late Monday. The manager wasn’t available, she said.

That will leave only a small Kmart store in Miami. It has a handful of stores in Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Transformco, the company that bought the assets of Sears and Kmart out of the bankruptcy of Sears Holdings in 2019, did not immediately respond to an email requesting comment.

In its heyday, there were more than 2,000 Kmarts in the U.S.

Struggling to compete with Walmart’s low prices and Target’s trendier offerings, Kmart filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in early 2002 — becoming the largest U.S. retailer to take that step — and announced it would close more than 250 stores. read more

Auto supplier goes bankrupt after $30M verdict in defective parts lawsuit

Auto supplier goes bankrupt after $30M verdict in defective parts lawsuit

Southfield, Mich.-based automotive supplier Wrena LLC filed for bankruptcy Monday with the intention of selling the business after being ordered to pay $30 million in a lawsuit over defective parts.

The company petitioned for voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Michigan with liabilities between $10 million and $50 million, and just over $2 million in machinery and equipment assets, according to the filing.

Wrena and its parent company, Angstrom Automotive Group LLC, were hit with a $30 million jury verdict in Ohio a few months ago in a case won by power electronics giant Eaton Corp. The jury ruled against Angstrom and Wrena on four counts, awarding damages for parts defects tied to clutch failures.

That verdict, along with “rising costs” and “other market pressures” led to the company seeking bankruptcy and a court-approved sale process, according to a news release from Wolfson Bolton Kochis PLLC, which is representing Wrena in its bankruptcy. Scott Eisenberg is listed as the chief restructuring officer on the case. read more