Shopko Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Protection

Wisconsin-based Shopko filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The regional retailer will begin closing 105 stores immediately (see the closing list here).

The original Shopko store, opened in April 1962, is among the 16 locations closing in the retailer’s home state. The voluntary reorganization follows a revelation from McKesson Corp. in December that Shopko owes the pharmaceutical distributor more than $67 million in outstanding invoices. Toy industry effect is unknown as this time, but two toymakers made the list of the 30 largest unsecured creditors in the initial filing—Melissa & Doug ($787,00), and Hasbro ($708,000).

Companies and individuals seeking more information or to file a claim can visit the Shopko restructuring site or the case hub on Prime Clerk.

Sun Capital Partners Inc., a private investment firm focused on leverage buyouts, equity, debt, and other investments, owns Shopko. The firm acquired Shopko in a $1.2 billion leveraged buyout in 2005, followed by what was, at the time, the largest sale-leaseback of stores in retail history.

About the author

James Zahn

James Zahn, AKA The Rock Father, is Editor-in-Chief of The Toy Book and Co-President of The International Toy Magazines Association (ITMA). He is also a Senior Editor at The Toy Insider and The Pop Insider, and Editor of The Toy Report, The Toy Book‘s weekly industry newsletter. As a pop culture and toy industry expert, Zahn has appeared as a panelist and guest at events including Comic-Con International: San Diego (SDCC), New York Comic Con, Wizard World Chicago, and the ASTRA Marketplace & Academy. Zahn has more than 30 years of experience in the entertainment, retail, and publishing industries, and is frequently called upon to offer expert commentary for publications such as Forbes, Marketwatch, the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, USA Today, Reuters, the Washington Post, and more. James has appeared on History Channel’s Modern Marvels, was interviewed by Larry King and Anderson Cooper, and has been seen on Yahoo! Finance, CNN, CNBC, FOX Business, NBC, ABC, CBS, WGN, The CW, and more. Zahn joined the Adventure Media & Events family in 2016, initially serving as a member of the Parent Advisory Board after penning articles for the Netflix Stream Team, Fandango Family, PBS KIDS, Sprout Parents (now Universal Kids), PopSugar, and Chicago Parent. He eventually joined the company full time as a Senior Editor and moved up the ranks to Deputy Editor and Editor-in-Chief.