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SailNet is Done - 4 Year Old Thread!

12K views 39 replies 22 participants last post by  Donna_F 
#1 ·
Financial troubles sink SailNet
Dot-com has filed for bankruptcy, will liquidate business

SailNet, an online shopping site for boating enthusiasts that expanded
quickly during the dot-com boom, has declared bankruptcy and will be
sold off.
The North Charleston-based company and its affiliates, all operating
under the umbrella of MarineNet Inc., sought protection from creditors
earlier this week in Columbia.
The once-high-flying company, which recently ceased operations, will not
be reorganized. "Everything will be liquidated," said Ivan N.
Nossokoff, the company''s bankruptcy attorney.
SailNet listed nearly $1.4 million in debts and $211,000 in assets,
mostly office equipment, inventory and unpaid invoices.

The decision to close and liquidate the business "was simply a matter of
just not having enough money to continue to operate," Nossokoff said
Wednesday. "It''s just that plain and simple."
The bankruptcy filing shows that revenue at SailNet sank by $1.2 million
last year, or 20 percent, to $4.7 million. Sales to date this year have
totaled slightly more than $2 million.
The company listed its biggest creditor as Larry French, a Florida
resident who sold his St. Petersburg-based sail-making business to
SailNet about five years ago. He is owed about $420,000, according to a
court filing.
Other major creditors include National Bank of South Carolina, which is
owed $350,000, and the owners of SailNet''s former and current corporate
offices in Mount Pleasant and North Charleston, respectively. The
landlords are owed a combined $131,809.

The company is scheduled to meet with creditors Aug. 24 at a hearing in
Charleston.
SailNet sought bankruptcy protection several days after The Post and
Courier reported the online retailer had stopped taking orders and that
its Leeds Avenue offices had been closed for at least several weeks.
Customers who said they have been overcharged or have not received their
orders have been posting complaints about the company on Internet
message boards.
Nossokoff said it''s too early in the bankruptcy process to say how the
court will handle any unfilled orders or overcharges. He also was not
sure what will become of any personal information such as customers''
credit card numbers that might be stored in SailNet''s computer systems.

The liquidation plan spells the end of what had been a promising local
technology business.
SailNet was launched in 1994 in Detroit by Sam and Cheryl Boyle, who
moved the venture to the Charleston area in 1999. The next year, the
couple sold a controlling stake for an undisclosed sum to IDG Ventures,
a San Francisco-based venture capital firm.
Flush with cash, SailNet began to expand through acquisitions in 2000,
when it bought Johnson Sales Inc., a Florida business that manufactured
sails and other boat accessories. That same year it acquired
Boston-based competitor Boatscape.com.

At the same time, SailNet hired a crew of programmers, sales staff and
craftsmen. At its peak, the dot-com employed about 60 workers in the
Lowcountry and another 140 or so in Florida.
The Boyles last week told The Post and Courier that they parted ways
with the company''s majority owners in December. The bankruptcy filing
listed about 30 other businesses and individuals as shareholders, whose
investments in the company are wiped out.
SailNet said in its bankruptcy filing that John Rublaitus, who was named
president and chief executive officer in January, stepped down from
those positions Monday and is now serving as a consultant to the
company. Nossokoff said Rublaitus was traveling Wednesday and
unavailable for comment.




John P. McDermott can be reached at 937-5572 or
jmcdermott@postandcourier.com.
 
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#2 ·
Well that sucks, I just joined. Will the forums still exist?
 
#5 ·
Ahhhh sorry, didn't mean to bump a dead thread. I have no idea how I even found it.


That's good news.
 
#12 ·
Ha! I knew it. This whole thread is just an attempt to promote Sailnet's business. They probably planned the whole thing out 5 years ago and invented the bankruptcy filing just to make it seem plausible. And now Quickstep jumps in pretending to be a regular sailor with advice to buy stuff at Sailnet. But look... he's only got 303 posts. I bet they all say the same thing in different threads. Watch out Quickstep. When the moderators track you down you'll be moved to the "Thread of Shame".
 
#11 ·
It's my fault, somehow I ended up bumping an ancient thread.

So far this is my favorite sailing forum.
 
#17 ·
TAP - we apologize for any troubles you've had contacting us this week. We are in the midst of switching over to an IP phone system and it's been a rough week. As soon as I read your message I had one of our customer service reps call you and leave a message as we follow up on your order and

THANK YOU FOR YOUR BUSINESS!

Have a great weekend - there will be a nice breeze on the Chesapeake Bay this weekend and I intend to exploit it!
 
#22 ·
Now the Jedi are after me, for revealing these long-kept secrets... :)
 
#24 ·
Use the Force and the scotch mind cloaking device!!!!!!

Actually sounds real good right now, a good scotch and a great cigar.....one.more.hour.
 
#31 · (Edited)
Welcome to Sailnet. Browse around, lots of interesting subfora here, and knowledgeable, helpful folk. Look at the boat review & gear areas, post enough (I think you need 10) to start your own thread in the general discussion area.

Depends on the questions, and your answers to some of our questions: do you already own it, thinking of buying, fixing it up? How do you intend to use it, how much do you know, do you know what you *don't* know, how deep are your pockets, how are you at DIY? The more you tell us, the more focused the help we can give.

This site may give you some basic info about your boat.

If you want to see if your questions have been asked before, you can search the Sailnet site like this in your search engine:

"best anchor for 36' monohull" /site:http://www.sailnet.com/forums/

(1) Use the quotes, or you'll get lots of useless hits on single words in the search phrase.

(2) There is no {space} between the '/site:' and the 'http.....'.
 
#32 ·
Okay - I'll be serious for a moment...

There's tons of info on here - as well as many, many salts that will talk you through just about anything.

While you're waiting for some responses you can start poking around in this thread: The Salt's Corner Table

It's a thread with some of the best info to some of the most asked questions around here - including yours. And you can see who some of the go-to guys are.

Enjoy.
 
#34 ·
To paraphrase Twain, (not Shania ;)).. the reports of SNs demise have been greatly exaggerated...

Tell us, Sowa, where in Ireland are you planning to sail?
 
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#35 ·
I want to sail in the Caribbean. If I sail, I will livea board in Malahide, near Dublin. When I registered here a month ago, I was asked to introduce myself, thats where I was able to live chat with people. Can anyone help with finding a live ,general sailing chat here?
Thanks.
 
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