KENT, Wash. - Dozens of employees at Magnolia Audio Video are out of a job.
Magnolia is closing its corporate headquarters and its distribution center in Kent. Seven of its freestanding West Coast stores will also close, including two in Seattle. In all, 184 jobs will be lost.
Magnolia will now be managed from Minnesota - home of its parent company, Best Buy.
In a press release the company said: "The store closings, while painful, are necessary to bring Magnolia's expenses in line with lagging home theater sales."
Magnolia says doors will be closed at affected locations by the end of the month, and the transition to Minnesota will take place over the next 60 days.
All Magnolia Home Theater locations within Best Buy stores will remain open, as well as the Roosevelt Design Center in Seattle. The Bellevue and Roosevelt Magnolia Audio/Video stores will also remain open.
