JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Family Christian is closing all 240 of its bookstores, including two Jacksonville locations, one in Arlington and one on the Southside.
The closures will affect more than 3,000 employees in 36 states, according to ChristianityToday.com.
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The company has battled financial problems for much of this decade. In 2012, the chain was repurchased from a private equity group and promised in 2013 to donate all profits to widows and orphans around the world. The company filed for bankruptcy in 2015, according to the website.
Employees at one Jacksonville store confirmed the closing to News4Jax.
“We had two very difficult years post-bankruptcy,” company president Chuck Bengochea told ChristianityToday.com. “Despite improvements in product assortment and the store experience, sales continued to decline. In addition, we were not able to get the pricing and terms we needed from our vendors to successfully compete in the market.
"We have prayerfully looked at all possible options, trusting God’s plan for our organization and the difficult decision to liquidate is our only recourse.”
All social media accounts for the bookstores have been taken down.