A Massive Rental Company with 34K Locations Now Shuts Down

July 12, 2024

A massive rental company with 34k locations now shuts down its operations after filing for bankruptcy and 22 years in business.

Users of movie rental company Redbox were left saddened after it was announced that it would be shutting down operations.

The announcement comes after the rental company’s parent company, Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

According to court documents obtained by the Washington Post, the Connecticut-based company claimed to be one billion dollars in debt.

As a result, Redbox, which was a staple of many grocery stores including Walgreens, and CVS will be shuttered.

Many fans took to social media to express how upset they were with the loss.

“I knew it was coming, sadly,” UltraVada wrote in a post on X, formerly Twitter.

“It was inevitable,” a second person mourned.

“I knew this would happen when I heard they filed for Bankruptcy but its still sad to hear. I have a lot of fun memories of Redbox,” a third person lamented.

“I still don’t think this will be or ever be the end of physical media as we do still get remasters of some movies in 4k/Bluray.”

One person revealed that they had forgotten the rental service had existed.

Some users were not surprised by the announcement.

“Not surprised since nobody really rents videos anymore with the rise of streaming and what not,” one user admitted.

“Also kinda remember getting into a feud with them on here.”

One user also pointed out that the last remaining Blockbuster, located in Bend, Oregon, managed to outlive Redbox.

Redbox was acquired by Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment (CSSE) in 2022 and became one of the company’s flagship video-on-demand streaming services.

At its peak, CSSE operated more than 20,000 DVD rental kiosks across the country.

The company’s filing means that the company’s more than 1,000 employees will be laid off, per The Wall Street Journal.

It was also reported by Deadline that many employees at CSSE hadn’t received their paychecks and had medical benefits cut in late June.

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An essential company now files a surprising bankruptcy after miscalculating demand for its inventory after the Covid-19 pandemic.

Supply Source Enterprises, a leading provider of branded and private label cleaning products and personal protective equipment, on May 21 filed for Chapter 11 protection to seek a sale of its assets.

Supply Source brands include The Safety Zone and Impact Products.

The Guilford, Connecticut debtor listed $50 million to $100 million in assets in its petition and $180 million in funded debt, which includes $80 million owed on a term loan credit facility, $60 million owed on an asset-based loan, and about $40 million in unsecured debt.

Before the Covid-19 pandemic, which generated huge demand for cleaning supplies and personal protective equipment in 2020, Supply Source had been consistently profitable with stable single-digit growth, according to a declaration from the debtor’s Chief Restructuring Officer Thomas Studebaker.

Once the pandemic hit in 2020, the debtor had substantial growth due to high demand for safety, hygiene and sanitation products

The debtor reported adjusted Ebitda of $93 million in 2020 which was nearly a 300% increase over the previous year.

However, the company’s financial performance deteriorated in subsequent years.

Based on the unprecedented demand in 2020, the company commissioned an industry study in early 2021 that concluded that the Covid-19 pandemic would fundamentally change the cleaning supplies and protective equipment industry and market for its products.

The study also estimated that the company’s Covid-related growth would likely be sustained through 2024.

In contemplation of continued customer demand at elevated prices, based on the study’s data, the debtor increased purchases of inventory even though the costs were higher due to supply chain constraints during the pandemic.

Despite the study’s assurance that growth would be sustained for years, the pandemic’s positive effect on the market faded by the end of 2021 and demand for PPE decreased to normal rates, reports TheStreet.

The reduction in demand led to large amounts of excess inventory that the company could not sell in the same quantities and prices.

The excess inventory forced the debtor to secure additional storage space, which increased storage costs.

These factors tightened the company’s liquidity and led to a decline in annual revenue in 2023 by 26% from 2022, resulting in a negative 2023 Ebitda of $13 million.

The debtor’s liquidity issues led to it being overdrawn on its asset-based loan facility by $30 million.

The ABL lender in February 2024 swept the debtor’s bank accounts, further impacting the company’s financial distress.

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Also Read: This Massive Mall Retailer Is Now Closing In California

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