update: date=October 2008

The Sharper Image Corporation ( ), founded by Richard Thalheimer, is a American retailer that specialized in high-end electronics and gifts. The Sharper Image has been in business since 1977. Since filing for bankruptcy in 2008 it has closed its brick and mortar retail stores, remaining viable via direct-to-retail. At one point Sharper Image employed 2,500 people nationwide. The remaining branch of the company still has its headquarters in San Francisco, California, with hopes to revive its online and catalog portions of its business.

The company sold merchandise through dozens of retail stores throughout the United States, a monthly catalog, and its website. The company also had business-to-business sales teams. The sales teams were used to market products for corporate incentive programs and wholesale to retailers.

On February 19, 2008, the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, blaming low sales aggravated by a decline in consumer spending and negative publicity surrounding its Ionic Breeze air purifiers. Sharper Image indicated that stores in economically impacted areas would be closed immediately. As of June 1, 2008, 96 of the company's 186 stores nationwide had completed the liquidation process and were closed. The remaining stores and company assets were acquired by Hilco Merchant Resources and Gordon Brothers Group. Liquidation sales in the remaining Sharper Image stores have completed and all stores have closed. The company's web site had only provided an email address for further information and the message, "New site coming soon, for further information please email us" The message first appeared on the site on or just before June 15, 2008, and was removed in December 2008. The site is now back up, but it is stated on the site that the company cannot process online orders yet.

History

The Sharper Image Corporation was the brainchild of Richard Thalheimer. The company started as a catalog business to sell jogging watches. He started his advertising in running magazines, and within 2 years he had made his first million. This inspired him to start The Sharper Image.Fact: date=August 2007

The year 2006 saw a shakeup in the board of directors of the company, including the removal of Richard Thalheimer as CEO.

Thalheimer was replaced by Chairman Jerry W. Levin, under whom Sunbeam Products/American Household had filed for bankruptcy in 2001.

On April 9, 2007, Steven A. Lightman became the President and CEO. In May 2007, the company announced the hiring of Rebecca Roedell as Chief Financial Officer.

Levin is also Chairman & CEO of JW Levin Partners LLC, a management and investment firm, since February 2005, and Vice Chairman of Clinton Group, a private diversified asset management company, since December 2007. On February 8, 2008, 11 days before he announced the Sharper Image bankruptcy filing, JWL Partners Acquisition Corp., a SPAC, or special purpose acquisition company, submitted an IPO filing. The filing showed US$200 million proceeds targeted. The underwriting group is listed as Credit Suisse and Ladenburg Thalmann & Co. They have applied to list under the ticker “JWL.U” on the American Stock Exchange. The filing states that the blank check corporation intends to acquire or acquire control of one or more businesses.