Granoff Out At Tweeter
By Alan Wolf and Joseph Palenchar -- TWICE, 10/15/2008
Canton, Mass. — Tweeter Newco president/CEO George Granoff has left the company after 13 months on the job.
He was succeeded on an interim basis by Craig Boucher, a partner in CRG Partners, a Bethesda, Md.-based restructuring firm.
Tweeter’s senior management team will report directly to Boucher, who will serve as chief restructuring officer. All other reporting lines within the company will remain in place.
The change was confirmed by Tweeter Newco chairman George Schultze, principal of Schultze Asset Management. The Purchase, N.Y.-based investment group, which specializes in distressed businesses, acquired the A/V specialty chain in a bankruptcy auction for $38 million in August 2007.
In a memo sent to vendors and employees today and obtained by TWICE, Schultze attributed the move to the “current extreme economic conditions and the company’s recent peformance.”
During what Schultze described as a “temporary transition period,” Boucher will be responsible for developing and implementing strategic alternatives, assisting in the company’s day-to-day operations and communicating with all key parties.
According to CRG Partners, Boucher has more than 20 years’ experience in corporate restructuring and crisis management, with particular expertise in the retail and consumer products industries. Prior to joining CRG in June, he served as chief financial officer of Jane & Company, a privately held cosmetic firm, and before that was a managing director of the interim management and corporate restructuring division of the retail/consumer products industry practice at XRoads Solutions Group.
During his career, Boucher has developed and implemented numerous operational restructuring programs that have “substantially increased enterprise value for his clients,” CRG said.
Granoff, a former president/COO of the Ames and Bradlees discount chains, succeeded Joe McGuire following Tweeter’s acquisition by Schultze. During his tenure, Granoff revamped the chain’s infrastructure by consolidating warehouses and moving to a just-in-time delivery model to reduce inventory. He also oversaw the development of a new store prototype highlighted by the use of automated displays.
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Was George Granoff was part of the management teams at Ames, Bradlees AND Tweeter? And he still finds work? How is this possible? He's like the grim reaper of retail! Let's hope he doesn't end up running some kind of medical device company - he'll kill off half the people he screwed at Tweeter!
XTweeter - 2010-8-4 16:00:27 EDT -
How is anyone surprised that a guy who worked for TWO companies that went bankrupt couldn't turn around a bankrupt company? Or maybe that was the idea all along.
Long Gone - 2008-1-11 16:08:00 EDT -
It truly is a sad day when there were, and still are, some incredibly smart salespeople that have known what was needed to allow this company to remain profitable. These are the people who will suffer the most when Tweeter goes down, while the corporate idiots (Judy and others)will still get their fat stipends and get another job destroying another company.
Family Guy - 2008-29-10 18:57:00 EDT -
The beginning of the end or what appears to be the end started back in 2002 when Tweeter bought Sound Advice.I am sure that people from both Tweeter and Sound advice would agree.Tweeter was growing to fast and this merger was the one that broke the camels back leading up to the collapse in 2007.With no advertising to drive customers into the stores and finally on credit hold and no cash they were forced to adopt a direct marketing approach,but it was to late.Mean while the sales staff that hung on hoping and believeing that we would make it through were suffering loses in income and many were in draw.Tweeter files for bankrupcy as part of a buy out deal with Schultze investments.Just in time for the holidays the product starts flowing and we all seem releived and then they start to take back the old draw balances from the people that stayed through the hard times!In many states the labor laws protect employees from unfair practice.That is not the case for Sound Advice employees because Florida's labor laws do not protect employees from this preditory act.Not only that they decided to stick the direct marketing plan and not advertise to get people into the stores.The only thing that did not change through this period was how the sales staff was paid.The pay structure was based on a well oiled marketing and advertising plan and not a direct marketing plan.If you are not going to support your sales staff and treat them with respect you are going to fail no matter what you do!Granoff was doomed from the start.
Barrett Monroe - 2008-21-10 11:56:00 EDT -
Do you see how many FL people comment? That's because Sound
Advice was once the only store to buy in most of FL. We had the best
product, best people, and everyone knew it. What a shame! Tweeter
killed a once proud and profitable company. They need Peter to come
and buy the company back. Get the lines back that made them
special. Oh wait! Too late. hhgregg is in FL now. Let me tell you that
they will eat anyones lunch. Trained, commissioned associates and
they will sell something a dollar above cost to make a deal happen.
Wait until they have a store count above 400. Then we will see
someone truly stand up to BB. They pay for everything with cash.
Inventory, new stores, no debt. An easily sustained business model,
especially in the tough economy ahead. Goodbye Sound Advice. I
loved working there all those years through the good times, and am
just sick at what Tweeter did to you.
Shifter - 2008-21-10 05:57:00 EDT
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