http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view/20110128bank_forecloses_on_mass_supplements_seller_goesThis was the company that fulfilled the order's for the supplement site attached to Muscular Development [http://www.mdcyberstore.com].
A Northboro company that sold sports nutrition and dietary supplements online has gone belly up, leaving more than $8 million in unpaid debt.
First Trade Union Bank foreclosed on MuscleMaster.com Inc. to collect on a $4.9 million loan, but stands to recoup only about $1.25 million from the sale of assets and inventory, according to Joseph Finn Jr.
The Wellesley CPA, who does management consulting for distressed companies, was hired by MuscleMaster just before the bank swooped in
MuscleMaster’s unsecured creditors owed $4.5 million — several of which filed an involuntary bankruptcy case against the company on Monday — are likely out of luck.
A Worcester Superior Court-appointed receiver, appointed in a lawsuit filed by Abbott Nutrition against MuscleMaster, reported last week that MuscleMaster has virtually no assets to satisfy any claims.
The 13-year-old MuscleMaster took in $30 million annually in its best year, according to Finn, but ran into trouble due to product recalls. Last January, MuscleMaster recalled 17 body-building dietary supplements that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration believed contained dangerous steroids. The FDA fined MuscleMaster $500,000, Finn said, but an agency spokeswoman said she could not confirm that.
MuscleMaster owners Robert Myhal and Nicholas Chunias could not be reached for comment.
Matthew Rosenberg, a Missouri attorney representing a MuscleMaster distributor that filed the involuntary bankruptcy case, said unsecured creditors were notified of the company’s sale after the fact.
“All the unsecured creditors received form letters saying MuscleMaster was unable to pay its bills, and they tried to save the company but couldn’t,” he said.
In 2004, federal agents raided MuscleMaster, seizing more than 900 bottles of dietary supplements containing the now-banned ephedra. The company was accused of making unsubstantiated claims that the products enhanced athletic and muscle performance
