As We Change to Close

Women First Healthcare, the parent of San Diego-based cataloger As We Change, will fold the title by the end of the month.

Julie Martin, Dale Steele, and Nancy Casey launched As We Change in October 1996 as a catalog specializing in health and wellness products and gifts for menopausal women. Women First HealthCare, a pharmaceutical firm, bought the catalog in 1998.

On its datacard, As We Change lists 55,598 12-month mail order buyers. The average order was $85.

The closure is one move Women First is taking in an attempt to improve its financial situation. The company hired Miller Buckfire Lewis Ying & Co. to explore strategic alternatives, which could include filing for bankruptcy protection or an outright sale. In a report published by Reuters, Women First said at the end of February it had $2.7 million in cash and cash equivalents, a working capital deficit of $58 million, and long-term debt classified as current liabilities of $39.1 million.

As We Change could not be reached for comment.