Acquires Abilene wares

By ELIOT SILL

Staff writer

Alco’s corporate liquidation procedures have left the Hillsboro discount retailer with more time, though exactly how much isn’t known for certain.

While some Alco locations closed on or prior to Saturday, the Hillsboro location is part of a group of stores that will remain open until “mid to late February,” Manager Robert Berens said.

The locations at which closing dates were not extended had to either sell all their merchandise or pass it on to other Alco locations. The Abilene Alco sent inventory to Hillsboro’s store in order to facilitate its shutdown.

Berens said Alco has tiered its stores and will close them sequentially in order of tier. Tier one stores closed by the original Jan. 31 deadline. The Hillsboro location is in tier two, meaning it will close sometime within the month.

Berens said he and his employees have tried to be open with customers about what they know and don’t know.

“We’ll be very clear when we find out our last day, the store will have signs saying when there’s 10 days left, nine days, and so on,” he said.

Alco employees have kept normal hours, and Berens said none have left because of the store’s closure.

“At some point, the sale will get a little more aggressive, we’re going to need bodies to handle the increased business,” he said. “It’s never pleasant when your future’s up in the air, but I think everybody here appreciates that we’re still employed.”

The store won’t be required to sell all its inventory, but Berens said judging by how the Abilene location handled its closure, the discounts will likely increase before the store closes.

“We’re at 40-80 (percent off) right now, so we’ll see where that goes,” he said.