Brookstone

Brookstone
Company typePrivate
IndustryRetail
FoundedPeterborough, New Hampshire, United States 1965[1]
HeadquartersMerrimack, New Hampshire, United States
Number of locations
34 (October 2018)[2]
Key people
Steven Goldsmith (CEO)
Owner
  • Sanpower Corp.
Websitewww.brookstone.com
A Brookstone store in Kittery, Maine

Brookstone is a chain of retail stores in the United States and China. It was founded as a mail-order business in 1965, when it started selling items, such as dental clamps and other specialty tools.[3] Its first physical location opened in 1973 in Peterborough, New Hampshire.[4] The company's headquarters are currently located in Merrimack, New Hampshire.[4][5]

Brookstone now sells a wide assortment of products, including remote control helicopters and drones, alarm clocks and smartwatches, massage chairs, speakers, iPads and tablet accessories, blankets, pillows, and many other lifestyle items. Most of the products sold at Brookstone stores are designed by the company and sold under its own brand (white brand).[4][6] Brookstone stores are generally found in airports and also operates an online webstore. The company is distinctive in that it allows customers to play with any product in the store before making a purchase.[4]

On April 3, 2014, the company filed for bankruptcy under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware; in its first-day motions on April 4, the company sought permission to be acquired by the parent of Spencer Gifts.[7][8] The company's stores were to remain open and running as usual during the bankruptcy process.

In June 2014, Brookstone was purchased by the Chinese investment firm, Sailing Capital, and Chinese conglomerate, Sanpower, for more than $173 million. The company emerged from bankruptcy in July 2014.

On August 2, 2018, Brookstone announced the closing of all their mall locations to focus on their website and airport locations, days after the company was considering filing for bankruptcy.[9][10] On August 6, 2018, Brookstone filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and announced the closure of all 101 U.S. store locations.

  1. ^ "Brookstone Inc". Business Week. Archived from the original on April 5, 2009. Retrieved May 11, 2008.
  2. ^ "Locate a Brookstone Store Near You". www.brookstone.com.
  3. ^ Bhattarai, Abha (August 2, 2018). "Brookstone is filing for bankruptcy and closing all of its stores". Washington Post. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
  4. ^ a b c d Cite error: The named reference BSsite2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference FU was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ "Brookstone - No Search Results found : null". www.brookstone.com.
  7. ^ "Brookstone Holdings Corp. Chapter 11 Petition" (PDF). PacerMonitor. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference CH11 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ "Today, we announced we're closing our mall stores in the coming weeks. However, our website and airport stores are open for business! We will continue to provide you with the products you love. Thank you for your loyalty over the years". August 2, 2018. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
  10. ^ Tomi Kilgore (August 2, 2018). "Brookstone files for bankruptcy, to close all remaining mall stores". MarketWatch. Retrieved August 2, 2018.