Брукстон: Сауда желісінің тарихы мен банкроттығы

Chain of retail stores

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. Its first physical location opened in 1973 in Peterborough, New Hampshire. 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. On August 6, 2018, Brookstone filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and announced the closure of all 101 U. S. store locations.

Pierre de Beaumont and his wife, Mary, began Brookstone in 1965, for $500. After learning accounting by correspondence, they began mailing catalogs to thousands of hobbyists. The demand for the unique products that Brookstone offered developed into a strong consumer, demand based system that led to a need for specific Brookstone retail stores.

Brookstone opened its first store in 1973 in New Hampshire. Due to the growing success of this store, many more followed during the next decade; however the customer base for Brookstone stores were almost exclusively limited to those who received their distributed catalogs. In March 1980, the Quaker Oats Company bought Brookstone with a $9 million stock exchange. Brookstone fixed their customer base issue in the 1980s by introducing products in their stores that were not available in their catalogs; however, they still focused on unique tools and household goods. New items included products focused on travel, leisure, technology, audio, and games, and even developed a hands on experience for almost all of their products. In 1987, sales were posted at $93 million, which Brookstone considered a record. As a result, Brookstone began to consult with firms including Hilco Global and Tiger Capital Group LLC about buying or investing in the company. On March 26, 2014, it was reported that the mall retailer Spencer Spirit Holdings, the parent of Spencer Gifts, would look to acquire Brookstone out of Bankruptcy for $120 million. On April 3, 2014, Brookstone filed for bankruptcy as expected. 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. In August 2018, Brookstone filed for its second bankruptcy in 4 years, subsequently announcing the closure of all storefronts in shopping malls. Airport stores and their website will stay.

Brookstone is in competition with The Sharper Image, a similar company that filed for bankruptcy in 2008, but continues to run its online storefront and catalog. Another competitor was Hammacher Schlemmer, which began as a New York hardware store with a catalog.

In November 2009, Brookstone received media coverage over the firing of Massachusetts man Peter Vadala. Vadala allegedly disagreed with a co worker's homosexuality in a Boston store, after she made references to her same sex fiancee, seeking Vadala's congratulations. Brookstone asserts it has a zero tolerance policy on discriminatory harassment. Vadala asserted that Christians are "obviously" excluded from that discriminatory harassment policy in a Fox & Friends interview.

The treatment of animals in Brookstone's Frog O Sphere, an aquarium like self cleaning tank which contains two African dwarf frogs, has caused an animal rights controversy. In November 2009, PETA released an undercover video investigation allegedly depicting inhumane treatment of frogs prior to their use in Frog O Spheres at their supplier, Wild Creations. PETA alleges that frogs are raised in unfiltered water, infrequently fed,