7 Big Brands That Are Struggling
March 14, 2014 — -- intro: Quiznos and Sbarro, beloved darlings of fast-casual diners, both confirmed this week they have filed for bankruptcy protection.
Here are seven companies that are either closing locations or are struggling financially.
quicklist: media: 22803459category: title: Quiznostext:Quiznos, based in Denver, has filed for bankruptcy, after reports two weeks ago that the company was considering a Chapter 11 filing.
The sandwich chain says it hopes to reduce its debt by over $400 million.
Read More: Quiznos Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Protection
The chain has closed thousands of Quiznos franchisee locations in the last few years. It has about 2,100 locations. That's compared to Subway's 41,391 restaurants in 104 countries, according to Subway's website.
quicklist: media: 22803249category: title: Sbarrotext: On Monday, Sbarro LLC, the pizza fast-food chain, filed for bankruptcy protection for the second time in three years.
Read More: Sbarro Files for Bankruptcy Protection Again
Last month, the chain said it was closing 155 of its 400 restaurants in North America to cut costs.
quicklist: media: 22803776category: title: Barnes and Nobletext: Other book stores would shudder at news of a Barnes and Noble store opening nearby during the chain's 1990s heyday. Eventually, competitors such as Borders fell to the wayside - but Barnes and Noble has had its struggles, as well, despite remaining on top.
The Motley Fool has reported that the company may have over-invested in its Nook e-books but failed to compete effectively with Amazon's Kindle when the mega online retailer introduced its own tablets.
Barnes and Noble made a $63 million profit last quarter after reporting a loss previously, so things appear to be improving at the book chain.
The company still has a sizable number of stores: 700, in all 50 states, according to the company website.
quicklist: media: 22803534category: title: Blackberrytext:Back in December, Blackberry announced that it lost $4.4 billion in its third quarter, and bruising competition drove restructuring at the company.
This week, the company sold its U.S. headquarters in Irving, Texas, to Brookfield Property Group for an undisclosed sum.
Though it no longer may be the corporate smartphone maker of choice, the Canadian company could be experiencing a turnaround under CEO John Chen since November, as Blackberry stock has risen more than 50 percent.
Chen said he hopes to focus on Blackberry's devices, server business and Blackberry Messenger, its chat service.
quicklist: media: 22802998category: title: Staplestext:On March 6, Staples announced it would close 225 stores of its 1,846 locations in North America. As part of the announcement, the company said almost half of its sales are made online. The company may save about $500 million in its cost-cutting efforts.
Read More: Staples to Close 225 Stores as Sales Move Online
The company, based in Framingham, Mass., began in 1985.
quicklist: media: 22803315category: title: RadioShack text: Earlier this month, RadioShack announced it was closing 1,100 stores, leaving the company with 4,000 locations. RadioShack reported a quarterly loss of $191.4 million for the three months that ended Dec. 31. The company has revamped its image from a place to buy electronics to a wireless provider.
Read More: RadioShack Closing One-Fifth of Its Stores as Troubles Grow
"Our fourth quarter financial results were driven by a holiday season characterized by lower store traffic, intense promotional activity particularly in consumer electronics, a very soft mobility marketplace and a few operational issues," said CEO Joseph C. Magnacca in a statement.
quicklist:media: 22803197category:title: Searstext: After closing hundreds of stores over the last few years, Sears Holdings Corp., which owns its namesake Sears department stores and Kmart, reported a $358 million loss in its fourth quarter, the company said in February.
CEO Eddie Lampert called the holiday season "tough to terrible," the Associated Press reported.
Read More: Sears 4Q Loss Narrows as It Lowers Expenses
