RETAILING

Toy Retailer Files for Chapter 7: Merchants West Inc., owner of several Karl’s Toys retail outlets in Southern California, has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy and plans to liquidate. The Long Beach-based company filed for protection from creditors under Chapter 11 last August, listing assets of $12.415 million and liabilities of $17.943 million. All 18 Southland stores have been closed since last Friday. Calls to its corporate headquarters went unanswered. A trustee has set a March 16 hearing date for creditors in Santa Ana, a spokeswoman for the U.S. trustee’s office said.