Oberweis Dairy, the nearly century-old suburban business known for its milk products and ice cream stores, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Friday, according to court documents.
Illinois-based Oberweis Dairy Inc. has issued a statement following the company's decision to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, saying it strives to maintain "ordinary course of business" as it moves forward.
The company, known for its ice cream stores and milk packaged in glass bottles, notified the state that 127 jobs will be eliminated at their North Aurora facility on June 11, according to a filing under the Illinois Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act.
There is no immediate word on whether operations will be impacted at the company's retail outlets across the state, with the company saying in a Wednesday statement that they intended to continue operations while the bankruptcy process plays out.
“At Oberweis, we, like many other companies, have been forced to make some very difficult decisions related to the structure of our company. These difficult decisions are always made with full consideration of other options and with an eye towards the best future for our company,” the statement read, in part. “The intent of this filing is to seek debt relief while the company continues to operate in the ordinary course of business as a sale is pursued.”
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Oberweis says it is “committed to continuing to provide our customers with the highest quality, delicious milk and ice cream, along with world class service that our customers have come to expect.”
On Friday Oberweis filed a voluntary petition for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protections in the Northern District of Illinois, court records show. The company stated it owed more than $4 million in total unsecured claims to its top 20 creditors, with its largest debt of more than $774,000 to a Hudson-based transportation company.
Oberweis employs approximately 1,100 people, including many part-time workers at its stores. In the summer, when ice cream demand peaks, its workforce often swells to more than 1,500.
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The family business was founded in 1915 by Peter Oberweis, an Aurora dairy farmer who began selling milk from the back of his horse-drawn wagon, according to the company’s website.
It opened its first ice cream shop in Aurora in 1951. The company has more than 30 locations in Illinois, as well as shops in Missouri, Michigan and Indiana, according to its website.
It’s unclear if any of the ice cream store locations will close, but a court filing on Monday asked to continue paying employees wages and benefits. Otherwise, its workforce “will find other employment, at a time when the debtors need them most,” stated the filing.
Oberweis Dairy is owned by the family of Republican state politician Jim Oberweis.
