Streamline.com turns into Thanksgiving Turkey

Execs at Streamline.com today gave the online grocer less than two weeks to live.

The Massachusetts-based outfit is winding down its services and will stop trading on 22 November - just as the Thanksgiving turkeys are being stuffed - due to investor jitters.

The decision ends a six-month trawl to find financing for the company. Streamline, which delivered groceries and offered services such as film developing and dry cleaning, sold its Chicago and Washington businesses to Peapod in September. At the time it said it planned to pump the $12 million cash gained from the deal into its New Jersey and Boston markets.

Since then it has failed to find a buyer for its remaining operations - it looks like few can drum up the enthusiasm to dabble in this B2C delivery model.

"These efforts have proved unsuccessful to date and, in light of current conditions of the financial markets for business-to-consumer Internet companies, Streamline.com has determined that the interests of its employees, customers and creditors would be best served by the Company's prompt and orderly cessation of operations," it said in a statement.

Streamline, founded in 1993, plans to sell its assets to pay off creditors and provide severance to staff.

Last month New-York based dotcom Urbanfetch, which delivered goods including food, music and books, dipped out of the consumer delivery business. It has changed track and intends to stick to its B2B operations. ®

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