SILVERTHORNE — Harry & David picked up the gift baskets and luxury licorice and vacated its shop in the Outlets at Silverthorne this past weekend.
It was a surprise to the outlet staff.
“It was unexpected,” outlet manager Jayne Esser said. “There was no notice on that.”
But it wasn’t a surprise given the company’s post-holiday financial outlook.
In mid-January, Business Wire reported the company’s financial results for fiscal year 2011’s second quarter were “significantly below its expectations.”
In February, the New York Times reported that, in its regulatory filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the company “alluded to a potential bankruptcy, saying its future was in ‘doubt’ unless it could come up with some fresh financing.”
Harry & David wasn’t the only outlets fixture to check out during the weekend.
Old Navy’s last day was Monday, though by then the windows were papered, the doors were locked and the phone was disconnected. Esser said they had given notice of the departure.
As the seventh highest producing outlet, Old Navy’s departure will be a blow to the town of Silverthorne’s 2011 budget, which is largely based on sales tax, the town’s finance director Donna Braun said.
“We’re not thrilled with it,” she said. “It’s more material than some of the other stores.”
She said the revenue from the Old Navy outlet was a hefty portion of the overall revenue, on par with several other like-sized businesses. Harry & David contributed far less to the overall sales tax income, Braun said.
Braun said it’s yet to be determined whether the newly arrived Under Armour and Tuesday Morning stores will offset that lost revenue.
Corporate representatives from the stores did not return calls Monday, but Esser and Braun speculated that their vacancies are basic corporate decisions.
Esser said the outlets’ leasing department is “aggressively looking for exciting, name brand tenants that will work well.” She added that there have been several inquiries about the shopping center’s vacant retail spaces.
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