Boaters world files Chap 11

[B.C.]

Ritz camera, which owns boaters world filed for chapter 11. I guess we will be left with West Marine. I like boaters wold a lot better.

[gradywhite273]

ouch , that hurts .... but in this economy, sooner or later somebody was going to go down.

[B.C.]

Ritz Camara has 1000 stores. I don't shop at either much, but it is a shame. Just a sign of the time I guess.

[Mackey]

Need to use my gift cards asap.

[Mackey]

UPDATE 1-Ritz Camera files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy
Mon Feb 23, 2009 12:12pm GMT

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[-] Text [+] NEW YORK, Feb 23 (Reuters) - Ritz Camera Centers Inc, which said it is the largest U.S. specialty camera and imaging chain, on Monday filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, hurt by the recession and consumers' shift to digital photography.

The Beltsville, Maryland-based company filed for protection from creditors with the U.S. bankruptcy court in Wilmington, Delaware. Ritz said it has between $100 million and $500 million of both assets and liabilities.

Ritz operates under such names as Ritz Camera, Wolf Camera, Kits Cameras, Inkley's and The Camera Shops, and also operates the 130-store Boater's World Marine Centers chain. It said it had nearly $1 billion of revenue in the year ended Nov. 30, 2008.

In an affidavit, Chief Restructuring Officer Marc Weinsweig said the company's lenders ordered the company in January to boost reserves, thereby reducing available credit.

He said this came after the recession caused Ritz's 2008 holiday sales to be "materially lower" than a year earlier. Ritz was also hurt by losses at Boater's World, which suffered falling sales in 2008 as gas prices soared.

"The loss of revenues and profit margins from the diminution in the photo-finishing business proved too much of a burden, coupled with the losses experienced by the Boater's World business in 2008," he wrote.

Ritz said it will seek court permission to obtain $85 million of financing to keep operating while it restructures.

[B.C.]

The Boaters world by us is a nice store its just in a bad location.

[canyongear]

If im not mistaken Greg Norman is involved in that corp. in some fashion..

[esangler]

Damn that sucks! When the Boater's World closest to me first opened, I was very impressed with the inventory as well as the knowledge of their sales staff. But over the last couple of years, the most knowlegable, honest, and friendliest of their staff had moved across the street to Gander Mountain and to the Ocean City Fishing Center shop. They often did not have the namebrand marine hardware I was looking for (they tried to convince me that their housebrand Sea Bowld was superior to Aftco!, for example) and I found the staff much less knowlegable and even would have to track down a salesperson to get assistance. I don't know if this is typical of other Boater's Worlds, but that is what i experienced in Salisbury, MD.

[whowantstoknow]

Damn that sucks! When the Boater's World closest to me first opened, I was very impressed with the inventory as well as the knowledge of their sales staff. But over the last couple of years, the most knowlegable, honest, and friendliest of their staff had moved across the street to Gander Mountain and to the Ocean City Fishing Center shop. They often did not have the namebrand marine hardware I was looking for (they tried to convince me that their housebrand Sea Bowld was superior to Aftco!, for example) and I found the staff much less knowlegable and even would have to track down a salesperson to get assistance. I don't know if this is typical of other Boater's Worlds, but that is what i experienced in Salisbury, MD.

i went in my first gander mountain this winter.............i like bass pro better

[esangler]

i went in my first gander mountain this winter.............i like bass pro better

oh no doubt! I do too. But I have a Gander Mountain one hour away and the closest BPS is two hours and a seventeen dollar bridge toll away!