Rogers Jewelers could close its Lindale Mall store

CEDAR RAPIDS - Unless its corporate parent receives an acceptable offer, Rogers Jewelers at Lindale Mall in Cedar Rapids will close at the end of February.

Rogers Jewelers is owned by Samuels Jewelers of Austin, Texas, which filed Aug. 7 for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Its bankruptcy petition lists more than $100 million in assets and liabilities.

Those liabilities include $84 million owed to Wells Fargo and other lenders, $10 million owed to GB Credit Partners and $23 million in trade debt.

Samuels - which also owns Samuels Diamonds, Schubach Jewelers and Andrews Jewelers - operates in 23 states with a workforce of 690 full- and part-time employees.

For its fiscal year ended March 31, 2018, Samuels generated $112 million in net sales, but posted an operating loss of $14.9 million.

Samuels is seeking a going-concern buyer through a court-supervised process.

Interested parties will have until Jan. 21 to submit qualified bids.

Should the company receive an acceptable offer and complete a transaction, some or all of its stores may remain open.

Gordon Brothers of Boston and its joint-venture partner, Hilco Merchant Resources, were hired to manage the going-out-of-business sales that began in late October.

Rogers Jewelers also operates a store in Jordan Creek Town Center in West Des Moines.