The US private equity firm that purchased MEC says they expect to keep 17 of the company's 22 locations open while retaining 75% of its active employees. Earlier this month, it was announced that MEC would be ending its 49-year history as a cooperative after being acquired by Kingswood Capital Management. The purchase includes the acquisition of all of MEC's assets under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act, including most of its brick-and-mortar locations. The move also shifts MEC into a private retailer. In the open letter, the investment firm told MEC members, "We hear you." "We understand the news of MEC's sale – to an American private equity firm, no less – is concerning to some members," reads the letter. "We get it. We really do." "And…