The RSA is designed to enable the Retail Company to move through the chapter 11 process as quickly and efficiently as possible. Through the RSA and the chapter 11 proceedings, the Retail Company will conduct liquidation sales at its stores while continuing to pursue an ongoing sale process to conduct an expeditious, value-maximizing going concern sale of all or part of its store operations. In the event of a sale, the Retail Company may depart from a full wind down of operations to facilitate a going-concern transaction. The Retail Company believes this dual-path process will best maximize value for all stakeholders.
Eddie Bauer’s retail operator has filed for Chapter 11 after signing a restructuring deal with secured lenders, launching liquidation sales while seeking a going-concern buyer for all or part of its stores.
Shops in the US and Canada will stay open during the process, while e-commerce and wholesale operations run separately and remain unaffected.
The Retail Company’s retail and outlet stores in the United States and Canada will remain open and continue serving customers as the Retail Company begins its process of winding down certain stores. The Retail Company’s e-commerce and wholesale operations are not impacted by the wind down, as they are operated by a separate licensed operator, Outdoor 5, LLC (Oved), and will continue to operate as usual. Authentic Brands Group continues to own the intellectual property associated with the Eddie Bauer brand and may license the brand to other operators. The operations of other brands in the Catalyst Brands portfolio are not affected by this filing and will continue in the normal course.
The Retail Company has filed customary motions with the Court seeking a variety of “first-day” relief, including approval of the consensual use of cash collateral to pay employee wages and benefits in the ordinary course of business and otherwise fund operations through the chapter 11 process.
Marc Rosen, CEO of Catalyst Brands, said, “Even prior to the inception of Catalyst Brands last year, the Retail Company was in a challenged situation, with declining sales, supply chain challenges and other issues. Over the past year, these challenges have been exacerbated by various headwinds, including increased costs of doing business due to inflation, ongoing tariff uncertainty, and other factors. While the leadership team at Catalyst was able to make significant strides in the brand, including rapid improvements in product development and marketing, those changes could not be implemented fast enough to fully address the challenges created over several years.”
Rosen continued, “The Retail Company has evaluated all options and taken actions to best position the Retail Company for the future, including transitioning the Retail Company’s e-commerce and wholesale operations to Outdoor 5 LLC. After careful deliberation, the Retail Company has made the difficult decision to file under chapter 11 to implement a court-supervised sale process and solicit a going concern transaction. If the Retail Company is unable to come to such an arrangement, we will commence an orderly wind down of the Retail Company’s store operations.”
Rosen concluded, “This is not an easy decision, and we are grateful to the Retail Company’s associates and customers for their loyalty and trust. We are working to minimize the impact on the Retail Company’s employees, vendors, customers and other stakeholders. However, this restructuring is the best way to optimize value for the Retail Company’s stakeholders and also ensure Catalyst Brands remains profitable and with strong liquidity and cashflow.”
Eddie Bauer’s retail store locations outside of the United States and Canada are operated by other licensees, are not included in the chapter 11 filings, and will continue operating in the ordinary course.
Note: The headline, insights, and image of this press release may have been refined by the Fibre2Fashion staff; the rest of the content remains unchanged.
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (RM)
