Sharper Image to shutter its retail stores

Planning to shop at a Sharper Image store for a Father’s Day gift?

News flash: Under new ownership, the retailer has put $50 million worth of inventory at its remaining 86 stores on a closeout sale as it morphs into a company without any brick-and-mortar stores. All merchandise, the San Francisco-based company announced, is selling for 20 to 40 percent off the regular price. On Monday, June 9, the Sharper Image Web site had only a listing of retail locations, a link to send the company an e-mail, and this message: “Sorry to keep you in the dark. But, there’s something big coming. Soon. Stay tuned.”

Even with the price breaks, we don’t favor the Sharper Image Hybrid Germicidal Purifier SI724GRY electrostatic precipitator-type room air cleaner, $500. It rated only a fair in our latest review of room and whole-house air purifiers.

(Part of the financial hardship that led to the company’s February 2008 declaration of Chapter 11 bankruptcy and its May 2008 sale for $49 million grew out of a proposed settlement to a class-action suit filed on behalf of millions of consumers who purchased a Sharper Image Ionic Breeze Silent air purifier after April 1, 1999. Learn more about the legal issues in this January 2008 story from the Home & Garden blog.)

The company’s retail stores will accept all major credit cards, but all sales are final. Forget about discounts based on prior purchases or other discount offers; the company says it won’t accept them. And if you have any Sharper Image gift cards, read about the restrictions the company placed on the gift cards after it filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy in February and learn about the efforts by competitors to lure away chagrined customers.—Ed Perratore

Essential information: When you’re in the market for an air purifier, use our advice to determine whether you need one and learn how to choose the right model for your home. Ratings of room and whole-house models are available to subscribers. You'll find Father's Day gift ideas on our dads and grads page.