Second Chance for RadioShack

Hedge fund Standard General (New York) has won the go-ahead from a U.S. bankruptcy court to acquire the nearly-defunct RadioShack Corp. (Fort Worth, Texas) and proceed with its plan to reinvent the company as a smaller chain of “electronics convenience stores.”

According to CBS Business, Standard General beat out Salus Capital Partners (Needham Heights, Mass.), RadioShack’s largest creditor, in its attempt to acquire the company. Salus had said it intended to liquidate the assets of the 94-year old retailer. The new, slimmed-down RadioShack will consist of about 1700 stores, versus the 4000 locations it operated before its February bankruptcy.

The surviving stores are largely located in smaller cities of less than 100,000 residents, where rents are lower and fewer competitors exist. The stores will carry items such as mobile phone accessories and other small electronics. RadioShack will reduce its number of product lines and no longer carry larger and more expensive electronic merchandise, such as digital cameras or tablet computers. About 1400 stores will be co-branded with mobile carrier Sprint. Standard General says it is pursuing similar in-store shop opportunities with other partners. In question, however, is the issue of the RadioShack name, to which Salus owns the rights.