Plan 9 Music, the once-robust chain of record stores that has slowly shuttered most of them over the last several years, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Monday.
The Richmond Times Dispatch reports: "By opting for Chapter 11, Plan 9 plans to restructure its finances and continue operating…According to court filings, the company has less than $50,000 in assets and between $1 million and $10 million in liabilities." That’s…a lot of records.
The flagship location in Carytown, Richmond was looking to downsize earlier this year as Charlottesville’s last Plan 9 location also downsized with a move to the Seminole Square Shopping Center.
To cannibalize the countless other posts we’ve written on the topic of struggling record stores: It’s been a tough few years for music retailers. A marketing firm called the Almighty Institute of Music Retail reported that 3,100 record stores closed between 2003 and 2008. Plan 9 lost locations in Roanoke, Lynchburg and Harrisonburg in 2009, Williamsburg this year and on the Corner in 2008.