Dallas-based NeoStar Retail Group Inc, the company created by the acquisition of Software Etc Stores Inc by Babbage’s Inc has followed its Chapter 11 filing in April by deciding to liquidate. The move comes after a last-minute financing agreement failed to materialize; the stand-alone software retailer – still the largest in the US – says it will stop stocking its stores and will put them all up for sale. The company couldn’t line up enough financing to satisfy suppliers, who were demanding payment upfront for the holiday shopping season. It had hoped to get an additional $20m from Leonard Riggio, a director and chairman of book retailer Barnes & Noble Inc, but according to Dow Jones & Co, talks broke down last weekend when suppliers balked at extending trade credit. Babbage’s and Software Etc stores will continue selling their existing stock. The company says it will try to sell its 650 stores at an auction later this month in hopes of attracting two or three bidders with either inventory or capability to restock.
