Shells Seafood Restaurants was losing money for years, but the chain's chief executive sounded upbeat when the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in early September. ...more

November 30, 2008

If you just re-discovered the gift card in your wallet — lodged in between the movie stubs and tattered coupon — you're not alone. ...more

November 29, 2008

By now millions of people have received one of those e-mails floating around warning about gift cards this holiday season. To the frustration of retailers, the e-mails list retailers in bankruptcy – as well as several that aren't – and suggest extra caution about buying gift cards lest you show up at the store and discover it has closed or won't honor them. ...more

November 28, 2008

David Taylor's story shows that recent economic forces can drive out even the most conscientious, sophisticated and successful local retailers. ...more

November 28, 2008

Owners of towing companies aren't the most sympathetic figures, hauling away and impounding illegally parked vehicles as they do. But Jeffrey Peters said this accounts for only about 5 percent of his business. Split Second mainly moves heavy equipment for contractors, and that's a business hit hard by the one-two punch of falling home construction and, until recently, rising fuel prices. ...more

November 28, 2008

Jim Tomko's Beef O'Brady's restaurant has been more than holding its own lately. It's the rent increase in recent years that drove him to bankruptcy, he said. ...more

November 28, 2008

Stories like the Shells restaurant bankruptcy are playing out across the Tampa Bay area. Tribune research shows business bankruptcy here is rising much faster than in most regions of the country. All told, 500 businesses filed for bankruptcy in four Bay area counties during the 12 months that ended in June — 97 percent more than the year before. ...more

November 28, 2008

Innovative Steel Technologies Inc. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection this week. ...more

November 26, 2008

The days may be numbered for "scattered, covered and smothered" hash browns at Waffle House. The iconic roadside grill's biggest franchisee has filed for bankruptcy protection. ...more

November 26, 2008

Ernie Haire Ford Inc. of Tampa has filed for bankruptcy protection, boosting to at least five the number of local auto dealerships that have faltered in the troubled economy. ...more

November 26, 2008