Golden Gate Capital has emerged as the leading bidder for Eddie Bauer during a bankruptcy auction this week, with an all-cash bid for $286 million.
The Golden Gate offer will be presented for court approval on July 22 and, if it is accepted, the transaction is
expected to close in early August.
Eddie Bauer voluntarily entered initiated Chapter 11 reorganization proceedings last month. At the time, it entered into an asset purchase agreement with CCMP Capital Advisors LLC for $202 million in cash, which could be superseded by other bids at auction.
The Golden Gate offer will maintain the substantial majority of Eddie Bauer’s stores and employees in a newly formed going concern company.
This is just the latest in a series of acquisitions by Golden Gate Capital over the past several years of catalog-based apparel brand. Just last month, The Talbots Inc. signed a definitive agreement to sell substantially all of the J. Jill brand assets to an affiliate of Golden Gate for approximately $75 million.
Some of the other brands acquired by the private equity investment firm’s Orchard Brands have included Appleseed’s, Blair, Draper & Damon’s, Haband, Norm Thompson, Sahalie, Tog Shop and Winter Silks.
