Following the bankruptcy of distributor Marston Book Services and its parent company United Independent Distributors, publisher Verso posted online that Marston owes the publisher £1 million in book sales dating back to January, which they are unlikely to recover. The company has launched a Kickstarter campaign to cover some of the loss. They write, “Marston suspended shipping our books at the end of July, having laid off most of its staff, effectively severing Verso’s access to the UK market. Though Verso invested significantly in acquiring, editing, printing, and marketing books it published in the first half of 2024, it has […]
Bankruptcy
Booktopia Owes Creditors $60 Million; Was Pushed Into Bankruptcy By Credit Card Processor
Booktopia’s bankruptcy administrator told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation that the retailer owes creditors approximately $60 million (AU). McGrathNicol’s Keith Crawford said, “The vast majority of that debt is actually trade creditor debt, principally the suppliers of books,” who are unsecured creditors. The company has about 150,000 orders worth approximately $12 million that have not been fulfilled, many of those for pre-orders. And customers are holding $3 million in gift cards. The story reveals that the re-financing Booktopia had announced in June was derailed by their credit card processor. Booktopia executive chairman Peter George reports that, “Booktopia’s plans were hijacked in […]
Booktopia Files for Bankruptcy
Australian retailer Booktopia finally made its long-awaited announcement, that it is filing for voluntary bankruptcy. The stock continues to be suspended from trading on the Australian Stock Exchange, and McGrathNicol Restructuring is “undertaking an urgent assessment of Booktopia’s business while options for its sale and/or recapitalisation are explored,” a release states. The first meeting with creditors will take place before July 15.
RWA Files for Bankruptcy
Romance Writers of America filed for bankruptcy in Houston on Wednesday, citing declining membership and payment agreements with hotels to host its annual conference. According to the filing, RWA had approximately 10,000 members—whose membership fees support the organization—prior to 2019. During that time, around 2,000 members attended their annual conference. After that, membership went down to about 3,000 and continued falling. In 2018, the organization entered into contracts with Marriott hotels to host its keynote conference every year through 2026, then extended it to 2028 as the events in 2020 and 2021 were moved to virtual. In 2022, RWA attempted […]
Tattered Cover Tells Bankruptcy Court It’s In Sale Discussions
The board of the owner of the Tattered Cover Book Store, currently in bankruptcy reorganization, announced a decision that “positioning Tattered Cover for sale to a qualified, committed new owner is in the best long-term interests of the company, current investors, employees, suppliers and Colorado’s literary community.” The word “positioning” is quite intentional. They say “the company is in discussions with individuals and businesses across the US” but the press release and a motion with the court to delay their next bankruptcy hearing is designed to elicit “additional interest from other potential buyers as word spreads that Colorado’s iconic independent […]
Tattered Cover Hopes to Come Out of Bankruptcy This Year, Considers Moving Stores
After filing for bankruptcy in October, closing three of their seven stores, and laying off approximately 25 employees, Tattered Cover Book Store has updated its reorganization plan. The company hopes to emerge from bankruptcy by June 2024, and return to profitability in 2025 “by reducing costs and improving operations,” the Denver Gazette reports. That work is ongoing, however, since an earlier filing indicated the company lost approximately $340,000 in January due to costs from the holiday season and it was expecting to record additional losses in February. “Without a doubt we still have complicated negotiations to complete, challenging local economic […]