Speidel, a 105-year-old seller of watchbands, filed for bankruptcy. The Cranston, R.I.-based jeweler has had several owners over the past century, most recently Frederick Levinger, who came out of retirement to acquire Speidel two years ago.
However, the economic downturn derailed Levinger’s plans, said his attorney, Stephen Carlotti. “It’s the nature of the beast right now,” Carlotti said. “Fred has done everything reasonably possible to try to survive. He was unable to do so.”
In January, The Colibri Group, a Rhode Island jewelry maker where Levinger worked for three decades before his brief retirement, closed.