| Greg Gerber posted on April 30, 2008 19:26
CHINO, Calif. -- Alfa Leisure laid off its entire workforce today and shut its doors, one of the manufacturer's California dealerships confirmed this evening.
Owned by Johnnie Crean, son of Fleetwood founder John Crean, Alfa Leisure had a reputation for exceptional quality and workmanship. But the declining market for motorhomes made it nearly impossible for the company to compete, said those who were aware of the situation. It is not know how many people were impacted by the plant's closure.
Alfa Leisure has not yet filed bankruptcy and may be waiting for a potential buyer to emerge, one dealer suggested.
Attempts to reach Alfa Leisure's offices during working hours were unsuccessful and the company's voice mail system had been turned off.
Rumors began circulating late last week that closure was imminent. One source suggested the company hadn't received an order for a single coach in more than three weeks. Another source suggested the company owed several warranty shops tens of thousands of dollars and were out 120 days on accounts payable. The warranty shops had, apparently, stopped doing business directly with Alfa, requiring consumers to pay for the repairs and seek reimbursement directly from the company. |