Dear friends:
Collected Works is up for sale – but only until Christmas Eve. The price: $1.00. The catch: the new owner will need to assume all the store’s current liabilities. If a buyer does not come forward by December 24, we will have no choice but to close our doors.
We took a gamble two and half years ago expanding the store to twice its original size to accommodate a wider range of events and diversify our inventory. It’s a gamble that has not paid off. Rent and other overhead costs have more than doubled, but our sales have remained flat.
In good times, we might have been able to weather the situation, but major shifts are occurring in the book world (online retailing, big box stores, exchange rates, the rise of digital devices and content). Add to that our constantly rising rent and the current economic environment, and we have been left with no wiggle room.
Even sizable personal and community investments have not helped. Collected Works is currently struggling to meet even its most basic obligations.
Collected Works needs a new owner with deep pockets and an action plan to make the bookstore viable. Professional advisors have suggested moving the store to a less expensive space, finding a complimentary business to share the space and rent, or merging with an existing business. Craig and I have already exhausted our personal resources and are unable to pursue any of these options.
We are now hoping that a little media attention might get the word out and kick-start an 11th hour rescue of the store, but we are also preparing for the more likely outcome.
Effectively immediately we are offering everything we sell at discounts ranging from 25-50% in the hopes of generating sufficient cash flow to meet at least some of our obligations. Please visit us in store for details.
Many thanks to all of you for your loyalty and support over the last fifteen years,
Christopher and Craig.