LA-based private-equity firm Gores Group “is in discussions to purchase” over 200 of Borders’ 405 operating stores, the WSJ reports, citing “people familiar with the matter, in a deal that would keep the bookstore chain operating as a going concern.” Those people also insist other unidentified parties are also in purchase discussions with Borders. And they say the stores and related assets could sell for approximately $200 million. (Though not stated in the article, it implies that the other 200 or so stores would be severed from Borders, perhaps without a buyer or the infrastructure and assets to continue operating.) […]
Finance
REDGroup Fails to Reach Deal With Creditors, Will Stop Taking Stock on June 1
The bankruptcy saga of REDGroup Retail appears to be in its closing stages thanks to a number of developments over the weekend. Administrators Ferrier Hodgson failed to reach an agreement with creditors on a reorganization plan, laid off an additional 34 employees at REDGroup’s Melbourne headquarters, and on Monday informed suppliers that the company’s remaining stores in Australia would not accept stock after June 1, with any orders made on books not yet delivered should be cancelled. In a letter to landlords and suppliers, REDGroup’s administrators said they had hoped to find a way to keep the remaining 9 Borders […]
Creditors Oppose Borders Bid For More Time, and Seattle’s Best Objects to Contract Cancellation
Borders’ unsecured creditors committee objected to the bookseller’s bid for more time to come up with a plan to exit Chapter 11 in a court filing Thursday afternoon on several grounds. They are “gravely concerned” that extending the exclusivity period up to 120 days “could be detrimental to the interests of the debtors’ general unsecured creditors” and would only work if the committee itself could have the right to “file and solicit a plan at any time” (the unstated purpose of which would likely be to ask for liquidation, though they cite cases in which creditors did draft their own […]
So Ron Burkle Thinks Barnes & Noble Stock Will Rise
Investor Ron Burkle has been noticeably quiet since Barnes & Noble announced the interest received last week from Liberty Media in buying the company, but it turns out he was talking with his wallet. In the required SEC filing, Burkle disclosed that his Yucaipa companies purchased another 603,000 shares yesterday, paying $18.489 a share. Though Burkle is restricted by the company’s poison pill from acquiring more than 20 percent of shares, he had a small amount of room to buy. According to the filing, his 11,894,213 shares comprise 19.74 percent of shares outstanding. He could still buy another 150,000 shares or […]
Malone Explains to Shareholders Why Liberty Bid For BN
At a meeting with Liberty Media shareholders in Denver Monday to approve the planned spinoff of Liberty Capital and Starz, chairman John Malone explained why the company offered $17 a share for Barnes & Noble last week. He believes there’s a bright future for BN, and not just in terms of its digital growth: “I’ve been a Barnes & Noble customer myself for many, many years. The stores will shift around, but there will be a physical presence for a long, long time to come, and it will be a profitable presence.” Malone expects negotiations could take months rather than […]
Bookspan Owner Najafi Buys French DirectGroup Book Clubs, and More
Phoenix-based investment firm Najafi Companies, which bought the ailing North American Direct Group assets (including book club giant Bookspan, along with Columbia House) from Bertelsmann in 2008, has gone back for a second helping. Najafi is also buying DirectGroup France, Belgium, Switzerland and Quebec. Called “a billion-dollar, top-line” business, terms were not disclosed for the deal, expected to close by the end of May. Najafi will continue to operate the Paris-based unit separately, under current management, and intends to “invest significant capital into growing DirectGroup over the next several years, including strengthening its book club model, travel and financial services, […]