Iconic treasure hunt retailer closing all stores in bankruptcy

You’re likely seeing headlines about Dirt Cheap and Treasure Hunt, two “treasure-hunt” style discount chains whose parent company filed for Chapter 11 and is closing all stores.

Who is closing and why

• The chains are Dirt Cheap, Treasure Hunt, and Dirt Cheap Building Supplies, all owned by Channel Control Merchants/HDC Holdings II LLC.

• The company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in October 2024 and is using the process to wind down operations and shut every store.

• Court filings and local reports state that all locations are expected to close by the end of the year as part of the liquidation plan.

What kind of retailer it is

• Dirt Cheap and Treasure Hunt built their model around extreme markdowns on salvage and closeout merchandise from major retailers, marketed as a “treasure hunt” for bargains.

• They are described as “secondary market” retailers, buying inventory that regular stores struggled to sell and offering up to about 90% off typical retail prices.

Related “treasure hunt” closures

• A separate extreme-value chain, Bargain Hunt, has also started liquidation sales at all 91 of its stores and is expected to close them, with a bankruptcy filing anticipated.​

• Reports on Bargain Hunt explicitly compare its model to Dirt Cheap and Treasure Hunt and note that Channel Control Merchants’ earlier bankruptcy led to closure of its roughly 60 Dirt Cheap and Treasure Hunt stores.