RadioShack files for bankruptcy with up to 2,400 stores across America to close

• Struggling electronics retailer RadioShack has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and says it will sell up to 2,400 stores
• The Fort Worth, Texas company said Thursday that it was also having discussions to sell all of its remaining assets
• Up to 2,400 of its 4,000 U.S. company-owned stores will go to an affiliate of the Standard General L.P. hedge fund
• The company, which has not turned a profit since 2011, still operates nearly 5,500 stores and employs about 27,500 people worldwide

By Associated Press and Charlene Adams for MailOnline

Published: 18:03 EST, 5 February 2015 | Updated: 18:51 EST, 5 February 2015

After nearly a century of business, struggling electronics retailer RadioShack has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and says it will sell up to 2,400 stores.

The company announced Thursday that up to 2,400 of its 4,000 U.S. company-owned stores will go to General Wireless, an affiliate of the Standard General L.P. hedge fund, according to the company's announcement.

RadioShack has been on life support for quite some time, but the decision of the New York Stock Exchange to suspend its trading on Monday forced the company to pull the plug.

RadioShack: After nearly a century of business, struggling electronics retailer RadioShack has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and says it will sell up to 2,400 stores

CEO: RadioShack worked hard on its turnaround efforts, hiring Walgreen Co. executive Joseph Magnacca (photographed) as its CEO in 2013

The Fort Worth, Texas company said Thursday that it was also having discussions to sell all of its remaining assets.

'These steps are the culmination of a thorough process intended to drive maximum value for our stakeholders,' Joseph Magnacca, RadioShack CEO, said in the statement.

But the bankruptcy will not include the company's more than 1,000 stores in 25 other countries, stores operated by its Mexican subsidiaries, or its Asia operations.

RadioShack Corp. introduced one of the first mass-market personal computers and used to be the go-to stop for consumers' home electronics needs.

But it struggled as shoppers increasingly shifted to making purchases online and growth in its wireless business slowed. It has suffered years of losses.

Warning: RadioShack had warned of a possible bankruptcy in September, but received rescue financing that kept it afloat. Still, its CEO (photographed) recently cautioned the chain might not be able to find a long-term plan to stay in business

The NYSE suspended trading of its shares on Monday and sought to delist it. The NYSE requires companies meet certain market capitalization thresholds to remain on the exchange.

RadioShack had warned of a possible bankruptcy in September, but received rescue financing that kept it afloat. Still, its CEO recently cautioned the chain might not be able to find a long-term plan to stay in business.

RadioShack worked hard on its turnaround efforts, hiring Walgreen Co. executive Magnacca as its CEO and former Treasury Department adviser Harry J. Wilson as chief revitalization officer.

It also developed relationships with popular brands like Beats Audio and redesigned almost half of its U.S. locations — some 2,000 stores — in an effort to entice younger shoppers.

Its efforts to revitalize the company's brand image failed to pay off and retailer's shares, which were lower than $1 in the beginning of 2015, dropped to $0.24 when the NYSE suspended the company's trading, according to The Verge.

World Wide: The company, which has not turned a profit since 2011, still operates nearly 5,500 stores and employs about 27,500 people worldwide

The company, which has not turned a profit since 2011, still operates nearly 5,500 stores and employs about 27,500 people worldwide, according to its last annual report filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

RadioShack, which was founded in Boston in 1921, started as a distributor of mail-order ship radios, ham radios and parts.

In the 1950s, it entered the high-fidelity business, touting a device called the 'Audio Comparator,' a then-novel switching system that allowed the customer to mix and match components and speakers in the listening room.

In 1977, the chain started selling the TRS-80, known affectionately by its users as the 'Trash 80,' making RadioShack as important in microcomputers as IBM or Apple.