Lufkin's Hollywood Video store has closed.
Movie Gallery, the company which operates Movie Gallery, Hollywood Video and Game Crazy, began closing approximately 160 of its stores this month. The Lufkin location, near the Wal-Mart Supercenter, was one of them.
Joel Andrews/The Lufkin Daily News |
Hollywood Video in Lufkin has closed. The closure is part of a consolidation process the company is going through as it comes back from bankruptcy problems.
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One loyal Hollywood Video customer said she couldn't believe her ears when she found out the store was closed for good. Meredith Frazier went to Hollywood Video Sunday night with a friend to turn in a movie, only to discover all the lights off and two people inside she didn't recognize.
"Who would have thought they would close?" Frazier said. "You would think they would do really well."
Frazier said Hollywood Video had the best deal with a $16.23-a-month charge to rent as many movies as she wanted except new releases.
"Everybody that has worked there has been the nicest bunch of people," Frazier said. "Those kids were really good."
The video rental company filed bankruptcy Oct. 16. The closures are part of a restructuring process. A press release dated April 2 stated this round of closures is the third and final round.
"While the decision to close stores is never easy, this final consolidation will allow us to further focus our resources on those stores with the strongest operating performance and best prospects for growth after we emerge from bankruptcy," said Joe Malugen, chairman/president/CEO of Movie Gallery.
According to its Web site, Movie Gallery made the decision to close stores with weaker sales.
Malugen promised customers the company would do what it can to help them find nearby stores.
"We will work with customers at affected stores to transfer their accounts to other nearby Movie Gallery and Hollywood Video locations where possible," Malugen said.
The Movie Gallery store at 519 U.S. Highway 69 north in Huntington will remain open.
Hollywood Video in Lufkin had a liquidation sale before closing, according to Meaghan A. Repko, a spokeswoman for Joele Frank, Wilkinson Brimmer Katcher.
Movie Gallery representatives referred all questions to their Web site, moviegallery.com, and press releases.
