Circuit City to close all 16 Atlanta locations
By MIKE MORRIS
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Monday, November 03, 2008
Circuit City announced plans Monday to close 155 stores, including all 16 of the electronics retailer’s metro Atlanta locations.
The company will also close stores in Macon, Warner Robins and Athens. The store locator on the Circuit City Web site now lists only three stores within 100 miles of Atlanta — Rome, Columbus and Chattanooga, Tenn.
The company said in a news release that the 155 stores that will be closed “are under performing or are no longer a strategic fit for the company.”
According to a statement posted on the Web site, stores pegged for closing will not open on Tuesday, and store closing sales will begin on Wednesday.
“The company expects the sales to be completed no later than calendar year end,” the statement said.
The press release blamed the decision to downsize the chain on several factors, including “waning consumer confidence and a significantly weakened retail environment” that the company said has negatively impacted sales.
“Since late September, unprecedented events have occurred in the financial and consumer markets causing macroeconomic trends to worsen sharply,” said James A Marcum, vice chairman and chief executive officer of Circuit City Stores Inc.
“The weakened environment has resulted in a slowdown of consumer spending, further impacting our business as well as the business of our vendors,” Marcum said. “The combination of these trends has strained severely our working capital and liquidity, and so we are making a number of difficult, but necessary, decisions.”
On Friday, Circuit City’s stock sold for 26 cents a share, down dramatically from a 52-week high of $8.24.
By MIKE MORRIS
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Monday, November 03, 2008
Circuit City announced plans Monday to close 155 stores, including all 16 of the electronics retailer’s metro Atlanta locations.
The company will also close stores in Macon, Warner Robins and Athens. The store locator on the Circuit City Web site now lists only three stores within 100 miles of Atlanta — Rome, Columbus and Chattanooga, Tenn.
The company said in a news release that the 155 stores that will be closed “are under performing or are no longer a strategic fit for the company.”
According to a statement posted on the Web site, stores pegged for closing will not open on Tuesday, and store closing sales will begin on Wednesday.
“The company expects the sales to be completed no later than calendar year end,” the statement said.
The press release blamed the decision to downsize the chain on several factors, including “waning consumer confidence and a significantly weakened retail environment” that the company said has negatively impacted sales.
“Since late September, unprecedented events have occurred in the financial and consumer markets causing macroeconomic trends to worsen sharply,” said James A Marcum, vice chairman and chief executive officer of Circuit City Stores Inc.
“The weakened environment has resulted in a slowdown of consumer spending, further impacting our business as well as the business of our vendors,” Marcum said. “The combination of these trends has strained severely our working capital and liquidity, and so we are making a number of difficult, but necessary, decisions.”
On Friday, Circuit City’s stock sold for 26 cents a share, down dramatically from a 52-week high of $8.24.
