To all Wear It Again Consignors, Customers, and Friends
First, let me start by saying thank you for all of your support over the past18 months. This was an exciting yet daunting business venture for me that, unfortunately, will not have a happy ending.
As some of you may know, Wear It Again has permanently closed its doors as of December 16, 2008 is filing bankruptcy. There were many factors that led to this outcome and I feel compelled to share some of the circumstances with you.
When I purchased the business in July of 2007, I assumed all of the previously accumulated consignor obligations from the former owners. Immediately after I took over the business, we moved to our new location on Thierer Road. This was the second of many hurdles that I was faced with, and it proved to have a much greater affect on business than I had anticipated.
In addition to those hurdles, while trying to grow Wear It Again, I found myself putting more and more of my personal savings into the business (this, I'm sure, is true of many small business owners). As the saying goes, "You have to spend money to make money." The problem was that I was spending money that I didn't have and making too little in return.
To add insult to injury, the U.S. economy took a major downturn this year, leaving me in an even tougher financial position, both professionally and personally. As a single parent with no second income, I could no longer put my personal savings on the line for the sake of the business. With all of these hurdles, from the original obligations to the poor economy, I was forced to make the difficult decision of closing Wear It Again.
For those of you who have merchandise here, you will, of course, be able to pick that up (pre-sorted and bagged) on the following dates (and ONLY the following dates):
Sunday, December 28th from 12pm to 5pm
Monday, December 29th from 2pm to 7pm
Tuesday, December 30th from 2pm to 7pm
Fixtures, equipment, and business supplies will be available for purchase on these dates. Also, someone will be here to give you your merchandise and answer any questions, but due to the bankruptcy, no payouts will be available.
This has been extremely difficult for me and my family. In the past 18 months, I have developed close relationships with so many of you and am very sad that we will no longer have this connection. I wish the best for all of you and hope that you don't have to experience this type of hardship. I sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this situation may have caused and wish you all a Happy 2009.
Sincerely,
Chandra Kleinsmith