Liquidation World pulls second vanishing act
Close to a dozen local Liquidation World staff will be out of work by month's end as the store closes its Whitehorse store – again.
Close to a dozen local Liquidation World staff will be out of work by month's end as the store closes its Whitehorse store – again.
In an interview this morning, a manager, who didn't want his name published, with the Qwanlin Mall shop said he and the other 10 part- and full-time employees only learned of the closure five or six days ago from head office.
"It's been a bit of a shock,” he said.
While there hasn't been a lot of communication on exactly what's happening, the manager said it's his understanding the company is having some financial difficulties and were able to get out of their lease at the Qwanlin Mall. It will be one of a few LW stores closing across the country.
Previous media reports have pointed to some financial issues the company was having with some of its stores, though it began a remodeling and rebranding effort where refurbished stores became LW – Everybody's Outlet Store.
The store will shut down by the end of the month, though an exact date remains unknown. As the manager said, there isn't a lot of communication from head office on such details.
Sales at the shop are expected to continue through the month, with discounts becoming larger each week.
While he said he and other staff have been given opportunities to relocate to other LW stores in the country, he won't be taking up the offer and doesn't know of other staff who have. Many, like himself, don't want to leave Whitehorse, he said.
This marks the second time the store has opened and shut down in the territory.
Originally opened in the same location in 2006, it closed in November 2008 along with nine other LW stores across the country amid financial issues. At the time, officials said shipping costs to the territory were proving too costly.
It then reopened less than a year later with LW under new management, opting not to ship some of the more expensive shipping items to the territory's store.
Officials with LW's head office did not return phone calls by press time today.
A letter from a local manager taped to the checkout counters apologizcd to customers and said he himself had been misled about the company's plans for the Whitehorse store.
Comments (4)
Up 0 Down 0
Anonymous on May 11, 2011 at 10:44 am
Oh no! Where will I get all my cheap crap now?!
Up 0 Down 0
b on May 10, 2011 at 11:43 am
dairy queen closed due to owner being ill and couldn't run the restaurant, KFC shut down was because KFC couldn't guarantee fresh chicken, Canadian Tire lot is a very expensive lease in the middle of downtown, owner of the land where midnight sun hasn't built to even try and draw a potential business, old Yukon Honda has had different businesses but is a small building.
Up 0 Down 0
jess on May 10, 2011 at 9:35 am
It will be sad to see LW go yet again. I cant afford to shop at whitehorse stores anymore. They charge double what you can buy in cities down south or online.
Is whitehorse dying a slow death? Yeah i think so. I agree that more and more empty shops are over running our city. Its cheaper to grab a plane ticket and go shopping for a weekend in the south where we arent gouged.
Up 0 Down 0
Brice Carruthers on May 10, 2011 at 5:24 am
It is unfortunate that another local business is closing its doors. Hopefully, something will replace them. For all the talk about economic prosperity and population growth in the Yukon, you'd never be able to tell by the many closed businesses in the downtown core. Buildings like the old Dairy Queen, KFC, old Canadian Tire, Klondike Inn, former site of Midnight Sun Coffee Roasters, empty former Yukon Honda Building, and empty lots on Jarvis between Second and First Avenue paint an entirely different picture than the rosy one we read about every day. The one area that is booming, though, is new government building construction.