Four Firkins Closing

Discussion in 'Great Lakes' started by sean_mpls, Jun 24, 2015.

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  1. mrpeterandthepuffers

    mrpeterandthepuffers Pundit (813) Oct 24, 2014 Minnesota

  2. EJJ1848

    EJJ1848 Initiate (0) Jun 24, 2013 Minnesota

    Really curious as to how this whole thing works, I feel as if some of these items should have been kept by the employees, are they able, or does the bank own everything tangible in the store once bankruptcy is filed ?
     
  3. 12tb

    12tb Initiate (0) May 18, 2011 Iowa

    Attorney here. Unfortunately, no, that's not usually how it works. In fact, usually the result of expanding too quickly is that the entire business fails, which is precisely what happened here. That's true even if one store is profitable.
     
  4. Stimulus199

    Stimulus199 Initiate (0) Dec 11, 2013 Minnesota

    Not necessarily true. This is why Chapter 13 bankruptcy exists; reorganization, shedding of debt, and continuing to operate the business in a leaner state.
     
  5. 12tb

    12tb Initiate (0) May 18, 2011 Iowa

    Yea, I think we agree. Which is why I used the word "usually" (i.e., "not necessarily true" in all instances). I assume you mean Chapter 11 (Chapter 13 is exclusively for individuals, not business entities). Chapter 11 is most often used by larger, established companies who have a relatively clear path to profitability. Thus, while it is a viable option for some companies, it's much more seldomly used by smaller, less established companies.
     
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  6. Evilyak

    Evilyak Savant (1,006) May 28, 2005 Minnesota

    just to clarify, the local SLP newspaper did a story on the closing, and alvey said that oakdale was holding the business up. it was SLP that dragged things down due to liquor boy, costco, target, and multiple grocery stores in the area all selling similar items in addition to the highway and traffic.

    http://sailor.mnsun.com/2015/07/01/the-four-firkins-rolls-out-its-last-barrel/
     
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  7. bigdaddypolite

    bigdaddypolite Maven (1,279) Mar 2, 2007 Minnesota
    Trader

    Thanks for posting; I had not seen that article.

    This thread is filled with a lot of assumptions regarding timing, intent, business models, second location, etc. that are contradicted by direct quotes from the guy who actually opened and operated the Four Firkins. You can decide for yourselves whether you think his comments are accurate and have merit, but I think the timeline and decision process he describes in this article sound very believable and reasonable. At the end of the day, this was a business model that worked well for a period of time and then ultimately failed (as a lot of businesses do). And, according to the guy who would know best, the end came quickly.

    There's plenty of room for valid criticisms around how things might have gone differently or worked better if handled in a different way. However, some of the comments here are simply mean-spirited and lean towards the pitchfork-wielding variety.
     
  8. treznor

    treznor Pooh-Bah (1,814) Dec 20, 2006 North Carolina
    Pooh-Bah Society Trader

    I agree that the article does clear up a lot of questions. It does suck about gift cards, but this clearly says that gift card sales stopped well before they couldn't be redeemed, and at the same time as he made the decision to close up shop. It also addresses the comments about highway construction, how it wasn't just the construction itself that was the issue, but the fact that it closed the road on a couple Saturday which are there heaviest days. In a slim margin store, a couple days of turning your highest volume days into lowest volume days can put a serious hurt on you, especially if you're already in trouble.
     
  9. mothman

    mothman Grand Pooh-Bah (5,802) Jun 21, 2007 Minnesota
    Pooh-Bah Society Trader

    I have no problem getting around the SLP area when they shut down 100 on the weekends. I deal with it every day and the occasional weekend. Sure, it's annoying, but if people really love the firkins as much as they claim, they would go an extra couple minutes around construction to get to their store. Not sure how loyal they are if they won't stop in because of a little road work. I personally don't think the construction was even one of the things that killed them.
     
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  10. Evilyak

    Evilyak Savant (1,006) May 28, 2005 Minnesota

    they installed a stop light right in front of his old location right as he was closing. pretty safe to say that traffic patterns changed enough to warrant the attention of the city.
     
  11. treznor

    treznor Pooh-Bah (1,814) Dec 20, 2006 North Carolina
    Pooh-Bah Society Trader

    Sure, but businesses don't run on the backs of the loyal customers. They're the small percentage that you try and court, but most of the revenue comes from your lightly to moderately engaged customers. And any roadblock (literal in this case) can cause large shifts for those customers.
     
  12. Torgo

    Torgo Initiate (0) Dec 19, 2008 Minnesota

  13. Seiler22

    Seiler22 Initiate (0) Apr 30, 2014 Minnesota

    I just read that auction page posted above and was late on the draw, if anyone got that Crispin sign or a barrel let me know if you don't want to keep it, my fiance and I have been looking for a barrel for a while and I would want to get her that sign
     
  14. brewseum

    brewseum Zealot (513) Nov 11, 2004 Minnesota

    Some great deals through the auction. When scrolling through all the items, I was amazed to see the retail counter that must have been custom built for their new location. If a guy had the SPACE for it, it's quite the structure and the winning bidders (Bryn Mawr Brewing) sure got a bargain. They were there disassembling it yesterday.As a collector of the "old stuff" I got some unique pieces at great prices. I provided some of them many years ago when Jason opened the original location, but he or his customers had sure added to the collection. One of the boxes I bought had all the newspaper and magazine articles featuring the Firkins...it was a bummer to read through them.
     
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