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Linens N Things--closing ALL stores

18 years ago

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Linens 'n Things, victim of a widespread credit crunch, will begin liquidating its remaining stores as early as Thursday after the bankrupt home goods retailer failed to find a buyer that will operate the company as a going concern.

Comments (24)

  • 18 years ago

    That's a bummer :-(

  • 18 years ago

    That's horrible.

  • 18 years ago

    Hopefully, there will be a big sale. I'll have to take a day off to catch all the good markdowns.

  • 18 years ago

    That really depresses me :( It's not a store I went in every week but it was a 'constant' in my world of retailers. Needed a certain size baking dish - head to linens n things. Need some new sheets for the guest bed - yep, right back to linens n things. I feel really badly for all of the employees, too. Losing a job in this type of economy and so close to the holidays is very hard.

  • 18 years ago

    Times are tough many business's closing, Circuit City was bought out also and many business's have failed completely.

  • 18 years ago

    It is really sad. Both Linens & Things and Cost Plus closed in our area a few months ago. In regards to the sales...don't bet on it. My daughter bought a couple of things during the close out and then found them cheaper at Bed Bath & Beyond! Apparently they mark everything at the original MSRP and offer a percentage off that, in the end it equaled the same prices (or in some cases more) they were charging before their notice of closing.

  • 18 years ago

    Ditto. When the LNT store closed near me I went and found that the 'percent off' was off the highest MSRP. Not a bargain. They had had sales that offered a bigger discount. By the time the merchandise was discounted further everything was gone, and I mean gone so fast like overnight, that it looked more like it had been transfered to the other store that was still operating.

  • 18 years ago

    I second what dilly dally said. No real bargains to be had. I went multiple times to the one that was closing nearby. Finally I was like "do you guys want this stuff cleared out of here or what?" lol
    I did buy some things at a discount but I was hoping for some killer deals due to the store closing but that didn't happen :(
    I'm bummed LNT are closing

  • 18 years ago

    Ours closed in August. I thought the plan WAS to close all since they declared bankruptcy in the early spring. No great deals to be had. I never bothered going back toward the end.

  • 18 years ago

    I liked LNT, but they were not very smart merchandisers. We have a BBB right down the street from LNT. If I bought something at BBB almost by the time I got home there would be another 20% off coupon in my mailbox. They even said to disregard the date on the coupon, it would be good anytime. I have a drawful of them. Not a lot of incentive to shop at LNT when BBB has the same merchandise and were willing to fight for my business.

  • 18 years ago

    They both honored each others coupons here even when expired and we too had an LNT walking distance from the BBB (literally right across the road) but BBB always seemed to have an edge on the pricing. Sometimes they both seem high to me though, don't you think? On another note, I was at Home Goods today and they have some kitchenaid organizers and tools that are clearly marked as Kohl's with the price which is double what Home Goods is charging for them. Go figure.

  • 18 years ago

    I agree that there probably won't be any real bargains. First, although I haven't been in a LNT store in a while, I would guess that the current inventory is nothing like what some of us were used to seeing in the old days. I've noticed that the selection at the web site has gone downhill this year. Often our first clue that a store or chain is in danger of closing is when we "can't find anything good there anymore". I also wonder if the better quality merchandise will still be in the store when the big "liquidation sale" begins. Sometimes they hire people who specialize in staging these sales and who bring in merchandise that was never in that store. On the other hand, if one has an opportunity to go in and check things out, "nothing ventured, nothing gained".

    I will miss LNT. I bought some outdoor furniture on sale there a couple of years ago that I really love, and I still have the white wrought iron bistro set I bought there about five years ago. Sad that I can't look forward to similar bargains.

  • 18 years ago

    Ever since LNT closed their across the street from BBY, BBY has slowed down sending me the 20% off coupons. Whenever they send me a coupon I use it so it's not for lack of shopping at the store. Now that their competition is out of the way I wonder if BBY is feeling empowered that they don't have to work as hard for my business?

    I heard on CNBC this week that Circuit City may file for bankruptcy, this rumor is fueling the increase in Best Buy's stock. I hate Best Buy because of their return policy. At least we still have Frys Electronics to shop at.

  • 18 years ago

    I haven't been shopping at LNT in quite a while, and we actually had a brand new store open up less than a year ago. A second store so close was just not necessary, IMO. On the other hand, I went to Cost Plus just today and found something really obscure that I'd been looking for at a great price. That's not the first time that's happend recently, either. I would really miss them if they went away.
    I know of one woman who has worked at the older LNT as long as it has been there and it just sucks that she's going to lose her job.

  • 18 years ago

    I had a gift certificate from them a few months ago and heard that they were going to close. Since it is a two hour drive to the closest store, I thought I would find somthing on line. I ordered a toilet paper holder for twnetynine dollars. It came in the original box with a sticker marked twentyfour nintynine. So.. I paid five dollars more, plus nine dollars or so postage. Hmm no wonder they are GOB!

  • 18 years ago

    I never saw what other's saw in either LNT or BBB. I'm still very sorry for those that work for them. In my opinion there are too many of the same type of stores out there. Not that compitition isn't good, but too much of a good thing and it's going to fail. And like many said, LNT weren't too good at competing pricewise, so they were even more likely to fail.
    ~Becky

  • 18 years ago

    It was nice to know, tho, if BBY didn't have something, or I thought the price was too high or it wasn't exactly what I was looking for, I could try LNT. With the way the car market seems to be going, too, will it start to resemble the days when Ford started and you could get any color car you wanted--as long as it was black?

    On a serious note, I also feel very sad for the workers.
    So close to the holidays, and the job market is so tough.

  • 18 years ago

    FYI....I called the store closest to me today and asked about any markdowns. It seems that the stores have not been told what to do yet by corporate. So before anyone goes running over there...call first and see if anything has been discounted.

  • 18 years ago

    marciagaye--I just came here to post that! My friend called me today to see if I wanted to go check it out. There were signs on the door saying no coupons accepted, but nothing was marked down or signed with a percentage off. I found an employee and she said that probably tomorrow they would start with the discounts--but I would definitely call before making the trip.

  • 18 years ago

    Once you see the big screaming yellow banners on a store, it's in the hands of the liquidators and the former owners aren't directly involved anymore, so don't expect a lot of bargains. Those liquidation companies are out for every cent they can recoup. Bombay was the same way--not even as good as a regular store sale. Sigh.

  • 18 years ago

    No great loss, AFAIC - the one nearest me (about 35 minutes away) was/is always grubby, disorganized, and the employees were always surly, like they were doing you this huge favor by doing anything whatsoever for you. The only nearby competition is really TJMaxx, Penneys has a miniscule home section. There's a BB&B about 10 minutes away from me now and the store is always clean, well-lit, reasonably well organized and if the employees aren't terribly knowledgeable (high proportion of students from the nearby university) they're at least apologetic if they're clueless. Plus, the LNT here wouldn't accept expired coupons, even by one day, and I swear the stars and planets had to be in the right conjunction for them to take a BB&B coupon (which also couldn't be expired), while I've used 5 year old BB&B coupons - got a big stack on Freecycle - and expired LNT coupons at BB&B with no fuss whatsoever.

    We have to go to the Maul (yes, that spelling is intentional) this weekend because DH is in dire need of some new pants for work and I'm curious to see how many empty storefronts there are. I haven't been there in about three months.

    It does suck about the job losses, though. I learned about two layoffs of people close to me just this week, both with no notice at all. Just "here's your final check and the phone number for the unemployment office, now go". It's a downward spiral - get laid off, can't afford to buy anything that isn't the bare necessities, more companies go out of business because their sales are in the toilet and lay their people off, then they can't afford to buy stuff... restaurants are already closing right and left here, including one of our favorites. :-( An acquaintance who works for a car dealership (administrative staff, not sales) has been warned to start job-hunting now because despite discounts and rebates they've sold one car in the last 30 days so layoffs will be inevitable within the next couple of weeks, and unless there's a huge increase in sales the dealership may close by the end of the year.

  • 18 years ago

    I am in Canada and I had an interesting experience at LNT last night. Although I've been a CAA/AAA member for years, I just recently learned that LNT offers a AAA discount - 10% off your total purchase. This is a great deal if you're buying a number of lower-priced items because the 20% coupon only applies to one item. So while checking out last night, I asked about the discount. The girl had to check, but her manager okayed it (I got EXTRA lucky because she didn't have a 10% coupon handy so she used the 20% instead -- off my whole purchase!)

    Mind you, LNT in Canada is not yet confirmed to be going out of business (although they have stopped accepting the LNT credit card and reward certificates). Still, even the US stores may still honour the AAA discount - it's worth asking!

  • 18 years ago

    I was there today and, at only 10% off, the sheets I considered buying were more expensive than they were when they acceped coupons. Lots of people going in and out but didn't see much buying going on.

  • 18 years ago

    You might be able to get some bargains on their website. They have 30% off most things. They are closing their stores here in Canada as well, but they also shut down the Canadian site.

    The panels I have been watching are $99 each (I need 6) in Canada. On the US website the same ones are $48. The US site doesn't ship to Canada so I had a friend order them and then ship to me. Even with the shipping cost it was a savings. I haven't gotten them in the mail yet, hopelfully this week.