Ritz Camera Centers - 2009 Bankruptcy and Purchase By RCI

2009 Bankruptcy and Purchase By RCI

On February 22, 2009, Ritz Camera Centers, Inc. filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Chief Restructuring Officer Marc Weinsweig cited the 2008 ongoing recession caused Ritz's 2008 holiday sales to be "materially lower" than a year earlier. Boater's World also suffered heavy losses in 2008 as gas prices soared. On April 2, 2009, it announced the closure of more than 300 stores nationwide and the liquidation of its Boaters World subsidiary in an attempt to reorganize and emerge from bankruptcy.

On July 21, 2009, Reuters reported that a group called "RCI" had agreed to purchase the firm's remaining 375 stores for $33.1 million; the group included David Ritz. The group said it would attempt to keep all 375 stores open. The purchase agreement required approval of the bankruptcy court which was scheduled to hear the case on July 23.

In November 2009, the new company, Ritz Camera & Image, LLC (RCI) opened five new stores, with a total open of about 300, with a wider range of products, including televisions, compact laptop computers, and smartphones. Ritz filed for Chapter 11 in June 2012, with plans to close half of their remaining stores, bringing them to 137.