April 27, 2005

Australian chain goes bankrupt . . .

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Austalia’s third-largest bookstore chain, Collins Booksellers, has gone bankrupt—or, “into voluntary administration”—after accumulating $7.5 million in debt. A report in The Australian by Michael Bachelard and Natasha Robinson says the 23-store chain, which was founded in 1922 by the Slamen family, which still owned it, “were put into administration on Friday after an Australian Securities & Investments Commission investigation found the chain was in danger of trading while insolvent.” Thirty-one additional Collins stores are franchises which will not be affected by the move. Most of the debt—some $4.2 million—is owed to book suppliers.

Dennis Johnson is the founder of MobyLives, and the co-founder and co-publisher of Melville House.

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