Colorado-based sporting goods chain Sports Authority announced on Wednesday that the company and several of its affiliates filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and that about 140 of its stores will close as a result.
But the company's Alaska stores will apparently remain open, at least for now.
Managers at all four Alaska Sports Authority locations -- in Wasilla and Fairbanks and two stores in Anchorage -- said that none of the stores in the state are closing.
Right now, though, the company won't confirm that.
"The company doesn't have any comment on which stores are closing at this point," said Kellie Kerwin, a spokeswoman for Sports Authority at communications firm ICR. "We haven't confirmed anything."
Sports Authority has 463 locations across the U.S. and Puerto Rico. The company said in a news release that the decision to close nearly a third of those stores "follows a comprehensive review of the Sports Authority store portfolio in light of the increasing amount of shopping that is occurring online. As a result of these changes in consumer buying patterns, Sports Authority determined that it needs fewer stores as part of its long-term business model."
"We are taking this action so that we can continue to adapt our business to meet the changing dynamics in the retail industry," said Sports Authority CEO Michael Foss in a statement. "We intend to use the Chapter 11 process to streamline and strengthen our business both operationally and financially so that we have the financial flexibility to continue to make necessary investments in our operations."
Sports Authority has already retained Melville, New York-based real estate company A&G Realty Partners to manage the sale of 87 leases, according to a news release. Those leases span 22 states, from Arizona to Virginia, as well as Puerto Rico. Alaska isn't on that list.
The store closings will happen over the next three months.