Indie on Air Records, the promoter of the Wampus Cat Music Festival, announced Friday that it would file for bankruptcy and that the already-postponed three day event will now not take place at all.

The news was announced Friday afternoon in Facebook posts by both Indie on Air and Wampus Cat.

“We regret to report that Indie On Air, the company behind Wampus Cat Music Festival, has had to close its doors and enter into Chapter 7 bankruptcy proceedings. The company has found itself in a position where costs and debts have exponentially outpaced income. It was for this reason that we made the decision,” read the Wampus Cat statement. “We know that the big question on everyone’s minds right now are refunds. Due to the nature of the bankruptcy proceedings, we simply cannot refund anything at this time and we won’t know whether or not we will be able to until we know how the process will resolve. This can take 3-4 months. If you purchased tickets, parking passes or camping passes, we have your contact information on file. We will do what we can to make this right. But presently, this is the situation we are in.”

Also canceled as a result of the filing is a second Carolina Indie Fest in downtown Sanford. IOA’s first Carolina Indie Fest in 2021 was a successful event, drawing thousands downtown to watch 30-plus acts on three stages for free.

Gross Farms II, which was to serve as the venue for the festival, was not involved in the decisions to postpone or cancel the festival. Owners John and Tina Gross said Friday that they still planned to host concerts at the 200 acre property.

“It is disappointing that the Wampus Cat Music Festival will not take place,” said Tina Gross. “John and I have worked on this project for almost three years. Nevertheless, our vision for Gross Farms II remains the same and we will continue moving forward. In addition to a venue, Gross Farms II will continue to be farm land property. Additional announcements and updates will be forthcoming in Summer 2022.”

Originally set for May 13, 14 and 15 at Gross Farms II in Harnett County, the festival was announced as postponed due to potential weather the week before it was set to take place. Not long after, Indiana-based Indie on Air announced August 5, 6 and 7 as the new dates. A new lineup had not yet been announced when the bankruptcy news broke.

The Indie on Air statement went into more detail about the nature of the company’s financial situation.

“Indie On Air Records LLC has spent the last 14 years working with independent musicians through many different means. Like all businesses we have weathered quite a few storms during that time. However, the one storm that we never fully recovered from was the Covid-19 pandemic. The loss of income and non-refundable deposits in 2020 and early 2021 put the company into a financial hole that it was never fully able to pull itself out of,” it read. “Adding to that the poor economy, the rising cost of equipment, fuel, supplies, etc. throughout the rest of 2021 and into 2022, the company has found itself in a position where costs have exponentially outpaced income. This has sent us even deeper into the financial hole we were trying to get out of. As such we had to make the difficult decision to close down the business for good and enter into Chapter 7 bankruptcy proceedings.”