Franklin Mint closes 30 retail stores, museum that attracted tens of thousands

<br>FRANKLIN CENTER, Pa. (AP) _ The Franklin Mint, the company known for its eclectic range of pricey collectibles, from Scarlett O'Hara dolls to miniature John Deere tractors, has closed its 30 retail

Friday, February 13th 2004, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

FRANKLIN CENTER, Pa. (AP) _ The Franklin Mint, the company known for its eclectic range of pricey collectibles, from Scarlett O'Hara dolls to miniature John Deere tractors, has closed its 30 retail stores and its ``museum.''

Vice president and general counsel Howard Lucker called the closures ``the next step'' after the November announcement that the company would lay off 200 Delaware County workers. At the time, the company had said the stores and museum would remain open.

The Franklin Mint would not say why it was downsizing, but it has faced growing competition from companies such as eBay that auction collectibles.

Lucker said the stores closed at the end of January and the museum shut its doors in December. The Franklin Mint will employ fewer than 50 workers in Franklin Center but will continue to sell products through its catalog and Web site, he said.

The Franklin Mint, founded in 1964 by Joseph Segal as the National Commemorative Society and first known as a maker of coins, has sold thousands of products including die-cast cars, Faberge-inspired eggs and porcelain dolls.

The company museum, located next to its headquarters, attracted tens of thousands of visitors who flocked to see genuine artifacts such as jewelry once worn by Grace Kelly as well as vintage Franklin Mint collectables.

At the highly publicized 1996 auction of items owned by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, the museum acquired her fake pearl necklace, worn by Jackie in a famous 1962 photo, for $211,500. The museum also had Princess Diana's so-called ``Elvis'' gown, purchased for $151,000 at a charity auction in June 1997, a couple of months before she died.

Both were reproduced for sale _ the necklace in exact scale, the dress for a 17 1/2-inch Diana doll.