RadioShack has filed for bankruptcy protection after agreeing to sell up to 2,400 of its stores to telecommunications holding company Sprint and the hedge fund Standard General, which is its biggest shareholder.
As pointed out by The New York Times, the US-based electronics retail franchise has not turned a profit since 2011 and has now finally buckled.
Sprint and Standard General have agreed to buy 1,500 to 2,400 of RadioShack’s 4,000 company-owned stores in the US. Sprint is likely to operate ‘store within a store’ departments in up to 1,750 of those stores, meaning the RadioShack name and branding will not be disappearing completely.
“These steps are the culmination of a thorough process intended to drive maximum value for our stakeholders,” said RadioShack’s chief executive officer Joe Magnacca.
RadioShack is one of America’s best known retail brands. In 1977, it began selling one of the first mass market computers, with an operating system designed by Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates. But having posted losses for the last 11 consecutive quarters, the company appears to have submitted to the rise of e-commerce and slowing mobile phone sales.
RadioShack image via Shutterstock
