This Washington retailer has filed for bankruptcy, plans to sell most stores
Car Toys, a 38-year-old Auburn-based retailer, has filed for bankruptcy and plans to sell the majority of its stores.
The company filed for a Chapter 11 bankruptcy in Western Washington Bankruptcy Court on Monday. A Chapter 11 Bankruptcy is commonly called a “reorganization bankruptcy” because it allows the company to stay afloat and pay back its creditors over time.
Car Toys sells electronics for cars, such as speakers, alarms and dash cams.
According to a news release from the company, the retailer will be selling 35 of its 48 stores, which span across Washington, Oregon, Colorado and Texas. The news release and the bankruptcy filings both did not list specific stores that are closing.
There are three Car Toys locations across Pierce and Thurston counties:
- 5015 Tacoma Mall Blvd. in Tacoma
- 12020 South Meridian in Puyallup
- 3328 Pacific Ave. SE in Olympia
“Car Toys plans to conclude an asset sale of 35 of its stores to five different parties consisting of highly tenured employees and regional competitors,” the release said. “This plan will provide jobs for the majority of the Car Toys employees and deliver customer service continuity for its highly valued customers in each of its existing markets.”
According to the news release, Car Toys will sell its stores to:
- Foss Audio and Tint, which will buy eight of 12 stores in Western Washington, the Uplifting Facility in Portland, Oregon, and six of the 10 stores in Colorado.
- Selway Sound dba Aspen Sound, which will buy both Spokane locations.
- Don Longworth and Raul Shakarov, who have a combined 41 years of experience at Car Toys, plan to buy five of the six Oregon stores.
- Drive-In AutoSound will buy the Colorado Springs North location.
- Troy Parcels and Chris Pritts, who have a combined 41 years of experience, will buy eight of the 12 stores in Dallas-Fort Worth area and four stores in Houston.
The release and bankruptcy filings did not say which stores each of the owners will buy.
“The Car Toys family has had an incredible journey the last thirty-eight years with our employees, our customers and the communities we serve,” company founder Dan Brettler wrote in the news release. “While we find ourselves in a less-than-ideal chapter, I am extremely proud of my team and pleased that the Car Toys brand, the majority of our jobs and our outstanding customer service and installation, will continue in all of the markets that we serve.”
The sales aren’t official until bankruptcy court approval.
This story was originally published August 23, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
