Deal could save Shreve's

A consortium of liquidators and jewelers, including David & Co. of Chestnut Hill, reached a tentative sales agreement late last night with the bankrupt parent company of Shreve, Crump & Low that could potentially save Boston’s oldest jeweler from shuttering its doors, according to officials involved in the deal.

The accord — valued at nearly $12 million — would likely salvage at least one of two Shreve’s stores operated by Tyringham Holdings Inc. Under the plan, David & Co. would operate the Shreve's brand and Schiffman's of North Carolina would run Shreve's sister chain, Schwarzschild Jewelers in Virgina, according to the officials who requested anonymity because the deal is not finalized. David & Co. and Schiffman's will continue the Schwarzschild and Shreve, Crump & Low names. As part of the agreement, three national liquidators would sell off some inventory through clearance sales.

‘‘We are optimistic both businesses will continue,’’ one official said.

For Shreve's, the store at the Mall at Chestnut Hill will likely remain in tact but the future of the new Boston flagship on Boylston Street is still unclear because of its expensive lease that costs about $130,000 a month, according to the officials.

The agreement must still be approved by a US Bankruptcy Court judge in Richmond, Va., at a hearing on Oct. 3. The deal was reached yesterday after 12 hours of negotiating as part of the auction process to sell off Tyringham’s assets after it filed for bankruptcy-court protection this month. The court filing blames Shreve’s recent move to an expensive, remodeled location in the Back Bay and a shift away from its traditional merchandise for the decline of the business.
By the end of 2005, Shreve’s and Schwarzschild saw sales drop 26 percent to $31 million from $42 million in 2000, according to the bankruptcy filing. The businesses also racked up their biggest losses tallying $9 million in 2005.

Kim and Ann Birks, owners of the Tyringham Holdings, could not be reached last night for comment.

An official for David & Co., one of the consortium’s members, also could not be reached for comment. With a family background in the jewelry business, David G. Walker has built David & Co. ‘‘to reflect and carry on the traditions of his family,’’ according to the company’s website. Rather than expanding the number of stores, and doing business ‘‘by the numbers,’’ in a ‘‘cookie cutter’’ manner, the company’s website says Walker has spent his time ‘‘making the one shop the best shop.’’

If approved, the deal with the consortium of jewelers and liquidators would replace an earlier agreement reached with Carlyle & Co. Jewelers, a North Carolina company, which that offered to buy Tyringham for $9.8 million. Carlyle had committed to keeping Schwarzschild but made no promises on Shreve’s future, according to the Chapter 11 filing on Sept. 6 in bankruptcy court. Carlyle’s owners could not be reached for comment last night.

The Birkses had tried to find a buyer this summer, but in a series of preliminary offers most potential buyers were interested only in the Virginia stores because the financial problems connected with Shreve’s were considered by some to be insurmountable, Thomas S. Gillespie, Tyringham chairman, said in an affidavit.

The Birkses concluded that the best chance of survival for Shreve’s — which traces its roots to a 1796 store across from Paul Revere’s silversmith shop in Downtown Crossing — was to file for bankruptcy court protection. The filing allows new owners to step in, without the burden of debt, and potentially renegotiate Shreve’s expensive lease on Boylston Street.
(By Jenn Abelson, Globe staff)