Now that Tower Records is going out of business, Justin Holmes will have to find someplace else to shop for his music and movies. But it won't be easy, said Holmes, 21, a Central Islip resident, as he walked into the Huntington store yesterday with his girlfriend, Jessica Rabinowitz. At Tower, he can find artists ranging from Slayer to Green Day, as well as many underground and independent musicians.
"Here you can get whatever you want," said Holmes, who does masonry work. Tower, after declaring bankruptcy in August, was auctioned on Friday to Great American Group for $134.3 million.
Based in West Sacramento, Calif., Tower succumbed after 46 years to competition from online music retailers and big-box competitors. Great American, a Los Angeles-based liquidator, plans to shut down all of the chain's 89 stores -- including the three on Long Island and four in New York City.
The locations will close after their inventory is sold, which will take about six weeks, on average, Andrew Gumaer, president of Great American, said in an interview yesterday. About 3,000 employees will lose their jobs. The company did not acquire the rights to the store leases, which were sold in a separate deal, Gumaer said.
A large neon green "Going Out of Business" banner hung over the entrance to the Tower store in Carle Place yesterday. The store has about 30 full-time employees, including a woman who specializes in classical music; she has worked at the store for 17 years. Employees learned Friday that they would be out of a job.
"It just wasn't run well enough," said Evan Monteiro, 24, who has ordered heavy metal music for the store for about three years. "A lot of the employees saw it coming." Monteiro said the store's employees were dedicated music-lovers.
"We're good at what we do," he said. On his days off, he comes in just to hang out. Donald Blake, 16, said he liked the store because it was focused mainly on music and the staff was helpful.
"They know more about music than a place like Best Buy," said Blake, who lives in Cold Spring Harbor and shopped in the Huntington store yesterday.
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