Vitamin World Inc. has hired Gordon Brothers Retail Partners LLC to immediately start going-out-of-business sales at 124 stores in more than 30 states, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported today. The Holbrook, N.Y., retailer on Tuesday asked the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Del., for permission to hire Gordon Brothers as its liquidation consultant and to approve a plan that would result in the closure of more than a third of its stores by the end of January, court documents show. When Vitamin World filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy in September, it had 334 stores and said at that time it had identified 51 stores it planned to close as part of its restructuring. Although it originally planned to reorganize its business, Vitamin World said in a court filing Tuesday that “unforeseen operational challenges and liquidity concerns” have caused it to now pursue a sale of “substantially all” of its assets. A hearing on the matter is scheduled for Nov. 21.
