Circuit City Stores Inc., the No. 2 electronics seller after Best Buy, filed for bankruptcy protection Monday, hoping the move will allow it to stock its shelves in time for the crucial holiday shopping season. The move comes about a week after Circuit City said it would close 155 stores as it deals with a worsening economic downturn that has left more consumers with less money to shop. The company intends to keep its remaining stores open through the bankruptcy proceedings. The Wall Street Journal has noted that Circuit City owes $60 million to Sony. There has also been reports that Sony has recently stopped shipping merchandise to Circuit City.
Rick Clancy of Sony notes, “I believe it’s important for Circuit City under its new management to continue its efforts to remain a premiere player on the CE retail scene. From both an industry and a consumer perspective, it’s beneficial to have a strong No. 2 specialty AV retailer serving the U.S. market. Hopefully, with this week’s action behind it, Circuit’s management can now focus on enhancing its operations, providing an improved customer experience, and offering more consumer choices in the marketplace.” He speaks more about the Circuit City situation at the Sony Electronics Blog.
