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Dozens of boats are lined up at the North River retail store in Wilbur on Tuesday.
So you know ...
WHAT: North River Marine retail stores open to sell remaining 2008 inventory; 2009 models will be available at a later date
WHERE: North River Marine, 7850 Highway 99 North, Wilbur
WHEN: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays
INFORMATION: 378-4442
For updates on store hours and inventory availability, visit the Inverness Group LLC Web site at www.invernessgroupllc.net/nrmcustomer.html.
WHERE: North River Marine, 7850 Highway 99 North, Wilbur
WHEN: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays
INFORMATION: 378-4442
For updates on store hours and inventory availability, visit the Inverness Group LLC Web site at www.invernessgroupllc.net/nrmcustomer.html.
Former North River Marine Inc. retail stores have been reopened in order to sell off the company’s remaining inventory that was surrendered to Wells Fargo Bank in late February.
North River Marine closed its stores Feb. 26 and the following day surrendered most of its assets to Wells Fargo Bank. The bank later retained the Inverness Group LLC, a Pacific Northwest turnaround and restructuring firm, to liquidate the assets.
North River Marine surrendered about 200 boats — of which 141 are 2009 models and the remaining are 2008 models — along with boat motors and accessories to Wells Fargo to help repay its debt, said John Davidson, managing partner of Inverness Group.
The turnaround firm reopened the North River Marine retail stores in Wilbur, Clackamas, Marysville, Wash., and Sacramento, Calif., March 24 and retained some of North River’s sales staff to sell the 2008 model boats, Davidson said. The 2009 model boats will be available at a later date, he said.
“This is a strong brand,” Davidson said Tuesday. “Sales are going well.”
Davidson wouldn’t disclose how much money the firm is expecting to recover from the sale of the boats, but said the boats are priced similarly to what they were in North River Marine retail stores prior to the surrender.
Inverness Group set the boat prices at each store location and Davidson said each is subject to negotiation within an established range.
The Inverness Group will close the Sacramento store at the end of April, and the firm is holding an auction this weekend to clear out about 30 boats that remain at the California store. Davidson said sales at the Sacramento store aren’t doing as well, and by auctioning the boats the company can avoid transporting the inventory to the Portland area.
The California auction will not affect sales at the Oregon and Washington stores and no additional auctions are planned, he said.
After North River Marine surrendered its assets, Inverness Group contacted customers who had their boats and motors at the retail stores for repairs and returned the property to its owners within a week, Davidson said.
The company also contacted people who were in the process of purchasing boats from North River Marine’s retail stores and completed the remaining sales contracts, he said.
On April 2, agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation served a search warrant at North River Boats Inc.’s production factory in Green, which also served as the retail company North River Marine’s headquarters.
North River Marine and North River Boats are separate entities, both owned by Brian Brush. The inventory being sold by Wells Fargo and Inverness Group is only from the retail stores.
The FBI agent listed in the federal search warrant affidavit claims that North River Marine allegedly inflated inventory reports and invoices to obtain millions in financing from Wells Fargo and committed wire fraud. The bank’s loses are estimated to be $3.3 million.
On April 10, employees at North River Boats Inc.’s production factory in Green told the News-Review that the factory had been shut down. Brush and officials at North River Boats have not returned several calls from the News-Review.
The sales manager at Auburn Sports and Marine in Auburn, Wash., said the store is a North River Boats dealer and was told a week after the FBI search warrant was executed that the plant would close temporarily.
“The only thing we’ve been told is that they’re on temporary shut down,” sales manager Darren Largent said. “It’s from day to day, and we’re on a need-to-know basis.”
Largent said the store has not received any new North River Boats but will continue to sell the boats it has in stock.
“We’re gonna continue to stand behind the product and sell the boats,” he said.
• You can reach reporter Marissa Harshman at 957-4202 or by e-mail at mharshman@nrtoday.com.
North River Marine closed its stores Feb. 26 and the following day surrendered most of its assets to Wells Fargo Bank. The bank later retained the Inverness Group LLC, a Pacific Northwest turnaround and restructuring firm, to liquidate the assets.
North River Marine surrendered about 200 boats — of which 141 are 2009 models and the remaining are 2008 models — along with boat motors and accessories to Wells Fargo to help repay its debt, said John Davidson, managing partner of Inverness Group.
The turnaround firm reopened the North River Marine retail stores in Wilbur, Clackamas, Marysville, Wash., and Sacramento, Calif., March 24 and retained some of North River’s sales staff to sell the 2008 model boats, Davidson said. The 2009 model boats will be available at a later date, he said.
“This is a strong brand,” Davidson said Tuesday. “Sales are going well.”
Davidson wouldn’t disclose how much money the firm is expecting to recover from the sale of the boats, but said the boats are priced similarly to what they were in North River Marine retail stores prior to the surrender.
Inverness Group set the boat prices at each store location and Davidson said each is subject to negotiation within an established range.
The Inverness Group will close the Sacramento store at the end of April, and the firm is holding an auction this weekend to clear out about 30 boats that remain at the California store. Davidson said sales at the Sacramento store aren’t doing as well, and by auctioning the boats the company can avoid transporting the inventory to the Portland area.
The California auction will not affect sales at the Oregon and Washington stores and no additional auctions are planned, he said.
After North River Marine surrendered its assets, Inverness Group contacted customers who had their boats and motors at the retail stores for repairs and returned the property to its owners within a week, Davidson said.
The company also contacted people who were in the process of purchasing boats from North River Marine’s retail stores and completed the remaining sales contracts, he said.
On April 2, agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation served a search warrant at North River Boats Inc.’s production factory in Green, which also served as the retail company North River Marine’s headquarters.
North River Marine and North River Boats are separate entities, both owned by Brian Brush. The inventory being sold by Wells Fargo and Inverness Group is only from the retail stores.
The FBI agent listed in the federal search warrant affidavit claims that North River Marine allegedly inflated inventory reports and invoices to obtain millions in financing from Wells Fargo and committed wire fraud. The bank’s loses are estimated to be $3.3 million.
On April 10, employees at North River Boats Inc.’s production factory in Green told the News-Review that the factory had been shut down. Brush and officials at North River Boats have not returned several calls from the News-Review.
The sales manager at Auburn Sports and Marine in Auburn, Wash., said the store is a North River Boats dealer and was told a week after the FBI search warrant was executed that the plant would close temporarily.
“The only thing we’ve been told is that they’re on temporary shut down,” sales manager Darren Largent said. “It’s from day to day, and we’re on a need-to-know basis.”
Largent said the store has not received any new North River Boats but will continue to sell the boats it has in stock.
“We’re gonna continue to stand behind the product and sell the boats,” he said.
• You can reach reporter Marissa Harshman at 957-4202 or by e-mail at mharshman@nrtoday.com.
