Another retailer bites the dust: Ken Crane's, the local electronics store that prides itself as the home of big-screen TVs, is closing for good in 60 days.
Ken Crane's joins bigger chains like Circuit City and The Good Guys, as well as smaller businesses as well, that just couldn't cut the current economic climate. It's particularly sad, knowing that Ken Cranes survived plenty of ups and downs in the past, having first opened in 1948.
Ken Cranes will now liquidate its remaining six stores six in Torrance, Hawthorne, Encino, Pasadena, West Los Angeles and Westminster.
From the press release:
"In the past, we have been able to weather these kinds of economic storms because people tend to stay home more, tap into their home equity, upgrade their home entertainment systems, and wait for conditions to improve," company president Casey Crane said. "Unfortunately, the combination of home foreclosures, tight lending policies and high unemployment combined to create the biggest recession in our company's history."
In April of 2008, Ken Crane's implemented an ambitious "reduction in force," making across-the-board cuts in overhead to maintain its viability, and manage the unprecedented storm of the uncertain economy.
But in January 2010, the company, which operated ten retail locations across Los Angeles, Orange and Riverside counties, closed four stores and consolidated operations in several areas. Sales volume continued to drop while financing and factoring options became extremely scarce.
"This is unquestionably the most painful business decision our family has ever had to make. We have been a home for employees, a place of trust for our customers and vendors, and a source of pride and leadership among our competitors for many decades. As painful as this is, we plan to end this as fairly as we can for all concerned," noted Crane.
"We may not be the first consumer electronics retailer to close in Southern California, but I sure hope we are the last," he added.
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