RadioShack Indep. Dealer Legal Fund
This crowd sourcing effort is being orchestrated by a group of independent small business people who own and operate approximately RadioShack dealer stores throughout the United States. The men and women who own these privately held businesses have been adversely impacted by the Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing by RadioShack Corporation on February 5th, 2015 and have chosen to take positive and proactive steps with a goal to protect their businesses and, at the same time, be as helpful as possible to the overall process.
We, the dealer franchisees (DF’s), have formed an organization called the Ad Hoc Group of RadioShack Dealers and Franchisees and have hired legal counsel to help us achieve our goals. We have appointed a committee of 12 DF’s from throughout the US with the sole purpose to represent what we believe to be the common interests of the larger DF community.
After 11 straight losing quarters, RadioShack Corporation ran out of cash and was forced into bankruptcy reorganization, putting many of the approximately 750 DF’s, mostly in small communities, in a tenuous position. Inventory has been very constrained and the negative publicity about the bankruptcy has adversely impacted most of our small businesses. As independent small businesses with no formal representative structure, each DF was left to fend for themselves with few resources in place to assist in navigating the treacherous waters of a major corporation bankruptcy filing. Thus the formation of the the Ad Hoc Group.
RadioShack dealer franchise stores are typically found in smaller communities and offer products and services that, if not for their knowledge and expertise, might not be found so close to home. Most of our stores have been around for decades and all are owned and operated by folks who live in their communities. We are people that attend church with you, shop in the same supermarket with you, and go to sporting events, school plays and community meetings with you. Many DF’s play important roles in their communities far beyond the service they provide in their stores. We are mayors, board members and chamber of commerce presidents. We are constantly looking for ways to give back to our communities and now we are asking for your help.
Why do the RadioShack DF’s need your help? Plain and simple - lawyers are expensive! We have retained the services of Mintz Levin, a large Boston law firm with a strong reputation in bankruptcy law. Our attorneys have been working feverishly on our behalf and doing a wonderful job and we finally have “a seat at the table”. Some of our goals include 1) as smooth a transition as possible to a new contractual relationship with whoever acquires the DF division, 2) assuring that RadioShack properly accounts for its financial obligations to the DF community, 3) continuation of certain customer loyalty programs such as gift cards, to name a few.
DF’s from throughout the country are pledging and contributing what they can to fund these efforts, but many DF’s have been badly hurt by the situation in which they find themselves - and through no fault of their own. The absolute minimum we must raise is $50,000, but we are likely to need more. While DF’s have individually committed many, many dollars to get our issues recognized by the court, we must ensure that we can sustain our legal effort to it’s conclusion. And that’s why we are asking for your help!
If you are a business owner, you can relate to the daily struggles of business in the ordinary sense. Then, add the problems of a “parent” company filing bankruptcy, resulting in a disruption to the normal course of business. Or maybe you are a current RadioShack customer that remembers buying your first transistor radio or computer from your local RadioShack store. Or better yet, you might be one of the many folks that shop at one of our stores, owned and operated by one of your neighbors - one of us DF’s who will bend over backwards for you because, after all, we are the ones with “skin in the game” always aware and concerned about your needs! If you have had the pleasure to do business in our stores, you know we will do whatever it takes to make you happy and earn your loyalty. And now, more than ever, we are doing whatever it takes to survive today and be stronger tomorrow.
If our message resonates with you, we ask you to consider contributing what you can to help us in this effort. Any donation, large or small will be gratefully accepted and will not go unnoticed. Whether it’s $5, $10, $50 or more, we cannot thank you enough for considering our plea. On behalf of the independently owned and operated RadioShack stores who are participating in this effort, along with their employees and families, we thank you for taking the time to listen and look forward to serving you for generations to come.
Thank you for your business, your kind thoughts in our time of need and your loyalty!
Sincerely,
The Ad Hoc Committee of RadioShack Dealers and Franchisees