Iconic New England seafood brand files Chapter 11 bankruptcy

When you grow up in New England you don’t see lobster as quite the luxury the rest of the country does. Lobster isn’t exactly free in coastal parts or New England but it’s often much cheaper. than anywhere else

In Swampscott, Mass., where I grew up, lobster fisherman left early in the morning from a pier maybe 2 miles from my parents’ house. Most of their catch went to local restaurants; but an industrious local could walk up and make a deal for lobsters that were legal to sell but that might not make the cut for restaurants.

Twin lobsters with various fixings for under $30 was common up and down the coast. And during certain parts of the year, when the catch was good, lobster in local grocery stores was often cheaper than chicken or ground beef.

Lobster was present at many family barbecues. My uncle even had a lobster boat for a few years (and I always assumed he paid my grandfather back for that purchase in product.)

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When my wife and I had friends to our family home in Jaffrey, N.H., there were many summer months were lobster cost less the $4.99. It wasn't much nearer to our long-time home in Connecticut, at least during the warmer parts of the year.

The past few years, however, have devastated the lobster industry, and that has hit one long-time leader in the space very hard.

Maine lobsters are famous around the world.

Image source: Daniel Grill/Tetra Images

A leader in Maine seafood

While you can fish for cold water lobsters in other states, Maine is the center of the lobster Universe. It's a state that has embraced the lobster and as you drive up and down the coast you can find it “in the rough,” in stews, in bisque, on rolls, and in pretty much everything short of ice cream (although it has probably been tried.)

Cozy Harbor Seafood has been a big part of that for a long time. The company shared its history on its website:

“John Norton and his friend and Cozy Harbor Seafood co-founder Joe Donovan got off the boats and started walking the wharfs by Cozy Harbor Seafood’s home in Portland, Maine, asking fishermen for their best catch, which they shipped to wholesalers around the country,” it shared.

It was a simple model then and a simple one now.

“We’ve grown since then. Our model hasn’t. More than 30 years later, Cozy Harbor Seafood still works the wharfs and local markets, asking Maine fishermen ‘what did you catch today?' We are now one of the largest Lobster processors in Maine, with locations in Portland, Tenants Harbor, South Bristol and Long Island,” it added.

More bankruptcy:

The company, Maine's oldest lobster provider, also understands that its business has gotten more challenging. It has tried to be a responsible player in the field.

“As we’ve grown, we’ve seen some struggle. Cozy Harbor Seafood was created by lobstermen who get it. As part of our pledge to the industry, we supply our lobstermen with bait and gas and we have four landing stations where fishermen can unload,” the company shared.

Cozy Harbor Seafood files Chapter 11 bankruptcy

Cozy Harbor Seafood, Inc., and its companies, Art's Lobster Co., Inc. and Casco Bay Lobster, voluntarily filed Chapter 11 Bankruptcy in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Maine on July 2. The company entered this process to continue operating while it restructures its liabilities and pursues a court-supervised sale to a new owner.

The seafood giant explained how it got to this point in a press release:

“The company's decision is best understood in the context of broader market forces that have strained the sector in recent years. Like many businesses, Cozy Harbor Seafood has had to manage many financial challenges in the years since the Covid-19 pandemic. In this environment, even well-established processors have struggled to manage sustained external pressures and market instability,” it shared.

The actual bankruptcy filing has not been released publicly as of publication of this article.

Cozy Harbor plans to keep its processing and packing facilities on St. John Street, at the Portland Fish Exchange and on Union Wharf in Portland, Maine in operation. It will not stop receiving lobster and whitefish deliveries from suppliers, staff will be paid, and orders will be fulfilled.

The company is represented by Bernstein Shur as legal counsel and Corporate Finance Associates as investment banking M&A adviser.

“Chapter 11 provides a proven process and legal protection to help Cozy Harbor Seafood efficiently and effectively achieve its long-term financial and operational goals, while providing a level playing field and the opportunity for company value to be maximized in the event of a sale, to the benefit of all creditors,” the company explained in the press release.