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Facing lawsuits from creditors and rising debts, the Yale Co-op has filed for bankruptcy under Chapter 11.
The Co-op's financial troubles have grown since 1997, when Yale decided not to renew the Co-op's lease, instead renting its space to Barnes & Noble, which operates bookstores on about 300 college campuses nationwide.
Barnes & Noble opened a new competitor, the Yale Bookstore, on the site, while the Co-op moved to another location a block away.
Two weeks ago, the Co-op filed for bankruptcy.
In an effort to reverse its financial woes, the Co-op last December came under the management of Wallace's Bookstores, a Lexington, Ky. firm.
The arrangement is a common one for foundering college bookstores, according to Jill Costie, general manager of the Yale Co-op.
"It's sometimes more beneficial," Costie said.
Wallace's recently finished a $2 million redesign of the Co-op aimed at making it more competitive with large-scale booksellers like Barnes & Noble.
Wallace's did not call for the bankruptcy filing, Costie said. The decision was made by the Co-op's former management.
The filing will not affect the current management of the store, Costie added.
Neither the Co-op nor the Yale Bookstore is the official bookstore for Yale, according to the university.
But Yale is a creditor in the bankruptcy because the Co-op owes the university money in back rent.
The Yale Co-op's financial difficulties resemble the financial troubles the Harvard Coop went through four years ago, said Allan Powell, the Coop's corporate general manager.
"We were operating with a department store model," he said. "A lot of things had changed. People wanted more of an academic bookstore."
The Coop hired Barnes & Noble to manage day-to-day operations of the bookstore, with an agreement to keep it running as a cooperative.
The Coop has remained profitable for the past few years, giving rebates to members that reflect its profits.
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