It doesn`t surprise me since Route 18 is a mess.
Illegal signs everywhere as Route 18 looks like the strip in Vegas, garbage and litter up and down and on the off ramps,grass not mowed,empty stores especially abandoned gas stations look like the slums, major paving on its way to tie up traffic (will probably start just before the Christmas holidays),Golden triangle fiasco will keep more shoppers away as that slowly progresses,Exit 9 construction will cause bottlenecks North and South for years as that work starts soon.

Shame on you, Gabowitz! We purchased 5 appliances from them last year, and paid an extra $500 for extended maintenance contracts. Now we receive a letter from the maintenance company to say Gabowitz never paid them, therefore, we have no coverage. Shame on you Kenny Cohn!

....so, anyone taking bets on what replacements might be able to "fit" into that building space? Given the prowess of the economic development wizards in E.B., and the direction in which this town is going.....my money is on 2 nail salons, a "We Buy Gold" place, and a Check Cashing window. Or..are my projections a bit too lofty?

With a fine retail establishment such as Walmart coming to town, I'm sure that an equally distinctive store will move into the Gabowitz building.......such as pawn shop! Just think, than East Brunswick can be known as an economic landfill.

As an East Brunswick resident and an employee at a retail store on Route 18, I cringe at the look, appeal and the "draw" of this roadway. Enough with the fast food chains, etc., we really do not need White Castle. We need to incite incentives for consumers to shop us!!!!

It is sad that Gabowitz has wilted under the pressure to make ends meet and neglected customers like Janet. Customer service and product knowledge was one of the things that set them apart from all the big retailers. Personally, my wife and I had good experiences with our past appliance purchases from them; wishful thinking would have them restructure their debt and possible reopen, but they'd be crazy to do so with Walmart coming to town.

How about a mattress store that does nails and buys gold? The mayor claims that business has improved on 18 but the figures he uses always includes the potential tarnished triangle store which isn't in yet.Why don't we just move some old reliable stores around again? When and if the BIG BOX store comes in what will move out?It's a shame that such a trusted company with a long history in East Brunswick may go under and leave the people that trusted them in the lurch.Long in the past Adrian Eisner handled consumer problems in the township I don't know if anyone does now but some one should ensure the rights of the people.

I had a very bad experience w/Gabowitz a few years ago with a major purchase and the customer service handled the situation very inappropriately and so I am sorry to say, I am not surprised at all.

Gabowitz going out is sad but reflects slolely on how store was operated. Bad service, high end products in a market when most people are suffering financially and are buying simpler appliances. The doomsday approach of some on this blog is so unrealistic. Do you know what the unemployment rate is?

We all want good retailers, but are we supporting the businesses already there the best we can? I recently needed a new battery for my laptop, and got it at Batteries Plus on 18 instead of going to the Apple store. It was actually a little more money than Apple, and it was an aftermarket battery instead of the real McCoy. But I justified it by saying I was giving my business to a local store (granted, a chain) and it saved me a ride to Freehold.

There's a lot of great suggestions that come out of these discussions. (signage issues, architectural review board, etc.) East Brunswick is a fairly small town. I have to think it can't be too difficult to get the Mayor's ear and get this dialogue going with him. Has anyone attempted to do that?

As for Gabowitz, I knew there was a problem because a friend of a friend told a horror story of his money being taken up front, and then no delivery ever came, only for him to go to the store and find the doors permanently shut. I looked on Yelp and Google Reviews and noticed others complaining about the same issue. (Though Yelp for some reason filtered most of those out.) Anyway, it's a shame to see a family business that operated that long go under in such a terrible way. My condolences to anyone who got screwed in the process.

John S. -- I also have heard a rumor that a plan is in place to completely remodel the Route 18 corridor between Old Bridge and New Brunswick, albeit starting in 2015 or something like that. I'm told the remodeling would be similar to the stretch of Route 18 in New Brunswick that goes through Rutgers University. That would be a remarkable thing if true. Any chance you can dig into this more?

I too bought an extended warranty contract and just found out Gabowitz hasn't paid and I therefore do not have coverage either....shame on you Gabowitz!!

Christopher K. - thank you for the info! Myrna - worth checking into but it'll be a stretch for us. Lisa - if yours was a more recent purchase, maybe you'll have luck with your cc company.

What a crying shame. I'm happy my daughter and her family are getting out of EB--this place is going to pot rather quickly. I just wish someone with clout in EB had a modicum of vision and the interests of the residents at heart.

Gabowitz had the lowest prices in this entire area. And we recently bought a GE stove and couldn't find our model cheaper anywhere. It's sad to see a successful business come to a bitter end. OK the storefront wasn't beautiful but if you want shabby try Elizabeth, NJ. If you want to shop in new surroundings you will pay top dollar for your purchases. It was definitely wrong not to extend the warranties when the money was paid to do so. But when bankruptcy is closing in people react the same as a drowning person. Desperately clinging to everything and anything to stay afloat. I've seen it firsthand from a family member. Not very pretty. But the recession is over NOT. And they didn't build that business anyway. Just ask the president of the US.

maybe it will be another head (smoke) shop. Since the northbound side has 2, it's only right the southbound side gets one.

I wonder how Derby in Highland Park is doing - hopefully they'll gain some business as a result of this.

I too got a letter that my warranty was not going to be honored, as they didn't get paid. However, we did get good prices and services from Gabowitz over the years that I have been in East Brunswick. As far as what will come instead of Gabowitz????? I think Mayor should think/try to get some good restaurants (which normally requires a liquor licenses), and not fast food chains. We have to go to other towns for fine dinning. We really could use a Mexican restaurant in town. Restaurants offering different cuisines would be great. Instead of Nail Salons etc. I am also all for Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, Wegmans etc.Again have to travel to other towns for them.

Soooo sad. I have been buying all of my appliances there for years. The last time I shopped there was 2 years ago for a stove, dishwasher, and microwave. It was always the store you went to for having great pricing, a full line of manufactures to choose from, as well as very friendly and knowledgable staff to work with you. It is so sad that such a reputable store( for so many years) has resorted to cheating so many of its devoted customers. I guess that I will be going somewhere else for all of my future appliances.! As one other blogger said, band together and see if in numbers maybe something can be done. Good Luck to All!!!

Our empathy for those whose money was paid and warranty service not obtained. You feel surprised, and betrayed, especially from someone you trusted. We dealt with Kenny Kohn and Gabowitz for 20 years, purchasing numerous appliances. We always felt that we were treated royally by Kenny and crew. He was always anxious to please, often going out of his way to take care of his customer(us). When our refridgerator stopped working and all of our food was going to spoil we ordered a new fridge from Kenny. But it could not arrive from the distributor for a few days. Kenny had a temporary fridge delivered that day so our food would not spoil. We made purchases from Gabowitz not only for their fair prices, but rather because of Kenny Kohn, who we found to be a genuinely nice, caring and very decent human being (a rarity in this day and age). We are sorry to hear of people's recent, unfortunate stories of negative experiences. We are also very sorry to hear of the difficulties that Kenny Kohn and Gabowitz are going through. Things must be desperate to close a business that has been operating for so many years. Hopefully everyone's health is OK and that is not behind the closing. We are wondering where we can find another Kenny Kohn and another Gabowitz to do business with. Good luck to all (including you Kenny Kohn).

There is Better Living in Jamesburg where we got are appliance's from after this whole mess started.

He may have been a decent and it was a great place to shop, but looking for another Kenny Kohn to shop with?? Ridiculous! He ripped us off...period! He took money and did not deliver product, that is stealing, plan and simple.

it represents the further decline of the town. just think of the lovely sight driving north on 18 when they build the big box store with a sign saying JM EB URBAN RENEWAL LLC. will add to the other postings for head shops, tattoo parlors, smoke shops and vacant stores. time to get out now before it starts.

Another example of the 3rd rate businesses coming to East Brunswick- a restaurant new to town , " The Tilted Kilt" is being built in the new section of Brunswick Square Mall,next to Panera Bread. I had never heard of "The Tilted KIlt," so I looked it up online. It's Hooters in kilts. The chain offers pub food- burgers, nachos, fish and chips , and beer served by young waitresses wearing skimpy bras and tiny kilts. The city of Evanston, Illinois sued sucessfully to keep them from opening downtown. A group of women employees are suing the chain for sexual harrassment. They don't seem to be especially successful as a number of franchises have had to close. But that's what's coming as part of the "upgrade" to Brunswick Square.

Kenneth Kohn was running a ponzie scheme for more than one year prior to filing bankruptcy. Store policy was 50% paid @ time of placing the order. That 50% of your money is what he was literally living on, for all personal needs. The delay in delivery was because your appliances were NEVER ORDERED from the manufacturer. I figured this out with a little "inside information" from a former employee. I confronted Mr. Kohn and appliances were delivered the next day!! I told him that I had my own way of dealing with people like him, cleared out his "upstairs office" and gave it to him straight from the hip. God helps those who help themselves! I know exactly how you feel and I did not purchase an extended warranty (never do that anyway until the unit is at least 1 year old).

Hattie, you're so wrong. Just wait it out a little longer and the evidence will emerge that the guy was a total crook. (And may very well face criminal charges.) Dont go out on a limb for this guy.

Ok, Hattie. We'll see.

Consumer fraud in nj pays triple damages plus legal fees and goes past the corp veil to go after ken and mike kohn personally. Also file police reports in new Brunswick and say hi to ken at the sea bright country club were he goes with everyone's money.

If consumer fraud is proven you can go after an individual. Meaning they can be personally liable. So you would force a lein on them personally. Also in nj it can not be erased by bankruptcy. So for those people who think that ken and mike knew they were going out of business and never intended on delivering the merchandice there are other routes other than the gabowitz bancruptcy court hearing at the end of sept.

Seems that Mike Kohn is selling his BMW M3. Feel bad for him.
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