New York City and Mahwah, N.J. — Premium Apparel LLC, an affiliate of New York City-based private equity firm Sycamore Partners, has entered into an agreement to purchase multiple clothing brands from Mahwah, N.J.-based Ascena Retail Group for $540 million. The apparel and footwear brands in question include Ann Taylor, LOFT, Lane Bryant and Lou & Grey. Under the terms of the deal, which is expected to close by mid-December, Premium Apparel will acquire the brands on a cash-free and debt-free basis. Premium Apparel did not specify how many of …
Lane Bryant
Ascena Retail Group Files for Bankruptcy, Plans to Close ‘Significant’ Number of Stores
by Katie Lee
Mahwah, N.J. — Ascena Retail Group, the parent company of clothing brands Ann Taylor, Justice, Loft, Lane Bryant, Catherines and Lou & Grey, has filed for voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. The Mahwah, N.J.-based company has reopened 95% of its stores since the COVID-19 outbreak, though Ascena cited the pandemic as “severely” disrupting the company’s financial foundation. The exact number of store closings was not disclosed, but the company said it will close a “significant” number of Justice stores, …