Buy Buy Baby stores are last effort CNBC has learned that its goal of saving the chain and keeping the business alive has fallen apart.
Brand management firm Go Global Retail, which owns children’s clothing company Janie & Jack, was eager to buy its beloved brand. bed bath & beyond The company’s CEO, Jeff Stredder, told CNBC that it continued to operate as a chain, but ultimately couldn’t come to an agreement on a valuation.
Bed Bath & Beyond’s primary creditor, lender 6th Street Partners, has sold Buy Bye Baby’s intellectual property, auctioned the lease and proceeded with the liquidation sale, allowing Go Global to We determined that we could recover more losses than we presented.
Dream on Me Industries is a little-known New Jersey-based retailer and one of Buy Buy Baby’s former suppliers. Won Chain Trademark The digital asset sold for $15.5 million after Bed Bath & Beyond failed to win any further bids.
Go Global believed it had a path to closure as of Monday, Stredder said, but ultimately couldn’t agree numbers with Sixth Avenue.
“We were making a fair offer. Sixth Avenue wasn’t unreasonable, but we had disagreements about the valuation,” he said. “We wish the IP bid winners success.”
In total, Go Global’s offer was higher than Dream On Me’s, but not by much, according to a person familiar with the terms, who “have seen a significant drop in value over the past six weeks.” He remained anonymous as he was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly.
If the company’s offer had been accepted, it would have had to put in additional capital at the time of the sale to keep the store running, and the bidding method did not take into account Bye Bye Baby’s intellectual property costs, according to another relationship. person said. person close to the problem. Sixth Street wanted to keep the store open, but Bed and Bath didn’t receive a valid bid to allow it, the person said.
Go Global was prepared to offer a “substantially higher” price when the auction process first began, one of the people said. In May the company was looking for additional talent Capital $50 million CNBC previously reported that it was to boost bids.
But almost three months after the liquidation sale began at 120 Buy By Baby Baby stores, there was little left to bid on other than IP, empty stores, leases and other inventory, officials said. Stated.
Over the past few weeks, Bed Bath & Beyond has Pushed back many times and split Buy Buy Baby used an auction process run by bankruptcies to ensure higher bids and find companies willing to keep the stores open.
But each time the bid was postponed, the delay was only about a week or so, which “certainly deterred future bidders and investors,” the person said.
“Most people can’t move that fast,” the official added.
At a hearing in federal bankruptcy court in Newark, N.J., on Tuesday, Judge Vincent Paparia said bye-bye baby as one of the bidder’s staffers was seen making a virtual appearance at the hearing via Zoom. approved the sale of its intellectual property to Dream On Me. I am smoking a cigarette on the screen.
Lawyers for Bed Bath & Beyond said it was “disappointing” that they were unable to secure a buyer as Mr. Papalia and other lawyers present at the hearing expressed disappointment that they were unable to save the chain. Stated.
“I share my disappointment that there was no going concern bid,” said Papalia.
“It’s disappointing. I don’t think either part has moved forward and it’s disappointing. I had higher expectations and sometimes those expectations don’t come true.”
