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Which means…….

They will NEVER be paid.

Unfortunately most bankruptcy court will put employees in bottom tier so by the time they get to them, likely they won’t have a lot of money left to pay them.

It would be much faster if they just file unemployment with the state to get paid.

And for customers that had orders, or had repairs, likely SOL. Orders are likely going to be cancelled with no refunds, since it’s now with liquidators, and those that had repairs, likely computer sold to liquidators so they are out of the computer. And since bankruptcy court put them at the bottom of list, most likely they will be SOL.

(Only exception is if they paid with credit card, then they can file claim with the credit card company, and then they will likely reimburse them since service was not provided fully. If they paid with debit card, unfortunately they are SOL since money was already withdrawn)
I can tell you from experience that in most states, employee unpaid wages are very close to the top in the pecking order of getting proceeds from the dissolution of a business. In my case, only a short-term special bank loan came first.
 
I left the company in 2021, it was edited time cards and then the destruction of evidence when the department of labor did its investigation. I would prefer to not be called a rat
I feel sad that your employer is BS. I see the word whistleblower a lot and HR would see you as a rat. Good thing, you leave the company before you become involved with the scheme.

You are a noble whistleblower.
 
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As things are fused together with less module parts, that adding memory hard drives / repair business would be limited to relaxes just screens which don’t crack too often or people choose to live with it.
 
I am an employee that was affected by this. Covid had very little to do woth this. We were the busiest we've ever been during my time there when the apple stores shut down. It was poor money management and thinking investing in EV and opening new stores was going ro solve the problem instead of investing in the stores we already had. Supply chain BS aside, on the store level, I had great fellow coworkers and our Market Director was great. It was poor decisions on the part of corporate that led to this. Im not going down without a fight. You bet your ass I'm going to lawyer up. We had no notice and effectively worked for free for almost 2 and a half weeks.
 
That he felt compelled to specify that the pandemic began "in Wuhan, China" is...interesting.

I mean, everyone knows where the pandemic began. How is its origin point relevant to this bankruptcy? Its existence? Sure! But its origin?

Weird.
Yeah…I mean I'm speculating, but it sounds like someone who wants to blame China when their entire business model relied on Chinese manufacturing to begin with which is a little dissonant?
 
Yeah…I mean I'm speculating, but it sounds like someone who wants to blame China when their entire business model relied on Chinese manufacturing to begin with which is a little dissonant?

I think you are right on it. Folks who speak about it as he did….are telling us something about how they’ve thought about what happened and why.
 
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Totally. Would be awesome if Apple opened up smaller satellite stores at the same locations and employed the same people.
It would, but I think part of Apple's business model is mostly owning their real estate which is part of their profitability long term and this company is mostly in rented spaces in shopping malls etc.
 
invest their lifetime savings hoping to gain something extra.
If you can't afford to lose it, keep it. :)

I understand where you're coming from, but it really is gambling, the potential payouts can make bank interest look like the pennies they are, but it does carry an implied risk. The employees know nothing of that kind of risk.

fwiw, I'd be included more on the investor side at my age and finances, but I haven't found anything outside of a mutual fund that I'd trust to pay off, so I don't risk a lot of money. Maybe I could make a lot of money, but maybe I'd lose everything and just die.
 
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Blaming it on pandemic is total utter nonsense. I mean, did you see the US, it was more crowded that pre-pandemic and the stock market shot up because consumer spending was off charts.
The stock market shot up because literally everyone was stuck at home, with money they can't spend outside. So everyone and their cat started investing. Especially considering everyone got free checks.

People buy stocks, market goes rippy.
 
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Blaming it on pandemic is total utter nonsense. I mean, did you see the US, it was more crowded that pre-pandemic and the stock market shot up because consumer spending was off charts.
I understood him to mean he could not obtain merchandise stock due to the pandemic. That was a real problem, and would be death for a reseller.
 
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Apple reseller and service provider Simply Mac is shutting down effective immediately after nearly sixteen years of business, the company announced internally.

Simply-Mac-store.jpeg

In a letter to employees today, obtained by MacRumors from multiple sources, Simply Mac CEO Rein Voigt said the company is shutting down its operations and terminating all employees effective immediately in anticipation of filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in the United States, which will result in complete liquidation of the company.

"Since our acquisition of Simply Mac from GameStop on September 25, 2019, we have worked hard as a team to grow our company to be North America's preeminent Apple Partner and provide our customers with transformational experiences that drive long-term loyalty," said Voigt, in the letter to employees. "However, we could not have possibly foreseen that on December 12, 2019 in Wuhan, China a world-wide pandemic would start and ultimately cause us to layoff half our workforce and close many of our stores."

Voigt said that Simply Mac's financial performance "never met our expectations" since the former GameStop subsidiary was acquired by Cool Holdings, Inc. in 2019. Due to "funding constraints," Voigt added that Simply Mac was "unable to adequately stock our stores with inventory or stay current with our financial obligations."

Voigt added that Simply Mac will be unable to pay employees tomorrow or in the future, and noted that all employees will receive a notice from the bankruptcy court in due course and have an opportunity to submit a claim, according to the letter.

As of January 2022, Simply Mac operated 53 retail stores across the United States. Many of Simply Mac's stores were located in cities that lacked an Apple Store, providing residents with a local alternative for Apple products and repairs.

Article Link: Apple Reseller 'Simply Mac' Shuts Down
I am curious now. SimplyMac just recently started SimplyEV for a series of e-bikes. I bought one, but now am seriously worried about my investment since you can't just find these bikes and parts anywhere online.
 
I think we are going to see more of this. Not just Apple stores. But, in general. Things will start to catch up with businesses in the US. Inflation and lack of inventory are not helping. Pandemic was part of it. But, reckoning of the economy riding high is starting to be felt. All the free money the government gave out won't last forever.

I assume part of their problem has been getting stock on items at reasonable prices. Unless you deep pocket and stock for the future, its tough to buy on demand. Which is what smaller guys have to do. With competitors like Amazon, Walmart, Best Buy and Target, non specific items are hard to compete with.
 
If you can't afford to lose it, keep it. :)

I understand where you're coming from, but it really is gambling, the potential payouts can make bank interest look like the pennies they are, but it does carry an implied risk. The employees know nothing of that kind of risk.

fwiw, I'd be included more on the investor side at my age and finances, but I haven't found anything outside of a mutual fund that I'd trust to pay off, so I don't risk a lot of money. Maybe I could make a lot of money, but maybe I'd lose everything and just die.
Everyone used to say that the food business was unbreakable, because regardless of what happens, people need to eat.
Then the pandemic came, and look at what we have now...
So everything is now a risk, including keeping your money in a bank or in a safe at home or under your mattress.

I would say invest a little on something you are able to control (even if it's limited control) and monitor its progress.
Those make money quickly schemes are very popular and pick on people's inherent greed (and needs too). A friend of mine fell into one of those traps. He explained to me and show me the business, which seemed very legit, but to me the results seemed to good to be true. He made a lot of money in a short time, BUT... reinvested it all plus a chunk of his saving so he could earn even more.. One day, the website, company, etc. disappeared with his money.
I feel sorry for him, and I'm glad I didn't fell for it. so keep your eyes wide open.
 
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Easy to say, but when your best friend comes to you and tells you he knows someone who's starting a promising business, and that you will make a ton of money, you may be more inclined to open your wallet.
Of course, your friend may also be a victim of the scam.
These people don't ask for money to banks and lending companies; they go to regular people who have little clue of the risks of investing. And use these same people to help them gather more people.
Look, I’m not saying investors deserve to get hurt. The “Nonsense” in my quote, was the assertion that investors were hurt MORE than employees who were getting stiffed for their wages. They worked the hours in exchange for a wage, and they’re not getting it - THEY are the ones “Hurt” by this. Investors DO assume risk of some or all of the money they invest - and if a “Friend” said you will “make a ton of money” and someone put in more than they can afford to lose - then they got a valuable lesson. Hopefully they learned something from it. TANSTAAFL.
 


Apple reseller and service provider Simply Mac is shutting down effective immediately after nearly sixteen years of business, the company announced internally.

Simply-Mac-store.jpeg

In a letter to employees today, obtained by MacRumors from multiple sources, Simply Mac CEO Rein Voigt said the company is shutting down its operations and terminating all employees effective immediately in anticipation of filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in the United States, which will result in complete liquidation of the company.

"Since our acquisition of Simply Mac from GameStop on September 25, 2019, we have worked hard as a team to grow our company to be North America's preeminent Apple Partner and provide our customers with transformational experiences that drive long-term loyalty," said Voigt, in the letter to employees. "However, we could not have possibly foreseen that on December 12, 2019 in Wuhan, China a world-wide pandemic would start and ultimately cause us to layoff half our workforce and close many of our stores."

Voigt said that Simply Mac's financial performance "never met our expectations" since the former GameStop subsidiary was acquired by Cool Holdings, Inc. in 2019. Due to "funding constraints," Voigt added that Simply Mac was "unable to adequately stock our stores with inventory or stay current with our financial obligations."

Voigt added that Simply Mac will be unable to pay employees tomorrow or in the future, and noted that all employees will receive a notice from the bankruptcy court in due course and have an opportunity to submit a claim, according to the letter.

As of January 2022, Simply Mac operated 53 retail stores across the United States. Many of Simply Mac's stores were located in cities that lacked an Apple Store, providing residents with a local alternative for Apple products and repairs.

Article Link: Apple Reseller 'Simply Mac' Shuts Down
Never heard of them. Unfortunate for the employees. I have no idea where they'll stand on the "bankruptcy line". Hope they eventually get some money.
 
Why do we allow something like this to happen. Someone does a risky startup to become a millionaire, but hey, if it fails, its on me and you!
People don't start a business for the sole purpose of becoming a millionaire. People start a business because they believe that there is an unfilled niche or because they believe they can better serve the customers. If they're right, they can become wealthy. If they're wrong or if their business model is poorly designed, they'll fail sooner or later.
 
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Some of these started as Peach Mac stores until GameStop bought them out in 2012-2013 and rebranded them as Simply Mac.

GameStop had a heavy hand in running it into the ground until they sold it in 2019.
 
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