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Two high-profile retail operations that are part of publicly traded, Portland-based Sortis Holdings abruptly closed earlier this week in Beaverton.
One is See See Motor Coffee, an offshoot of the original See See Motor Coffee at 1642 NE Sandy Blvd. The original location opened in 2012 and brought together people who love good coffee and are also passionate about motorcycle gear.
See See opened in Beaverton in July 2022, celebrating with, among other promotions, free haircuts at the Rudy’s Barbershop located in the same building at 12305 SW Broadway in Beaverton.
See See and Rudy’s are among the local businesses that Sortis Holdings invested in over the past three years. To some degree, those businesses fit the Sortis mold: hip, local names that fit Portland’s indie vibe. Sortis Holdings also invested in Bamboo Sushi, Sizzle Pie pizza, Water Avenue Coffee, Portland’s Ace Hotel, and standalone Portland restaurants such as Ava Gene’s, Cicoria and Tusk. Sortis made many of its investments after the COVID-19 pandemic weakened restaurants and retailers, betting that when customers returned, those brands that had built loyal followings before the pandemic would thrive again.
As WW and other media have reported recently, that strategy is running into some headwinds, as evidenced by a flurry of recent lawsuits and the collapse of a previously announced, $85 million deal to acquire the Ace Hotel chain.
Sortis Holdings announced the layoff of about 30 workers Nov. 3 (it employs about 1,500), but a company spokesman told WW at the time that Sortis Holdings was moving forward strongly: “We’re nearing a sustainable model, after a voluntary withdrawal from our agreement to purchase the Ace brand, that promises more jobs and benefits in our community.”
Earlier this week, however, Beaverton customers looking for a latte at See See Coffee or a haircut at Rudy’s got an unwelcome surprise.
A Sortis Holdings spokesman says the company had to make difficult decisions.
“The See See Beaverton and Rudy’s Barbershop Beaverton locations were not performing at a sustainable level and, to the benefit of their continued success, we were able to negotiate a lease termination with each respective property owner,” the spokesman said, adding that “See See customers can visit the team at See See HQ on Northeast Sandy Boulevard. Rudy’s customers have many options to visit and will be happy to hear that a new location is planned for Cedar Hills in the coming year.”
As for employees of the shuttered operations, Sortis has offered them other jobs. “All employees were offered the opportunity to move to new locations,” the Sortis spokesman said. “As challenging as closures are, especially for the teams and communities they love and support, it is an unfortunately common occurrence in Portland and the best support is continued support.”
A representative of the landlord for See See Motor Coffee and Rudy’s Beaverton, KAD LLC, declined to comment.