The 174 Eddie Bauer stores across the US and Canada are closing after an auction for the store operations was canceled due to a lack of interest.
According to combined media reports, Eddie Bauer LLC, which operates the Eddie Bauer retail chain in the US and Canada, filed for bankruptcy last month and said all the stores would be shuttered unless a buyer could be found.
RCS Real Estate Advisors, which is managing Eddie Bauer’s real estate matters during the bankruptcy process, is now marketing the store leases. Store closing sales are now underway and will continue until a satisfactory bid is put forth. Gift cards and rewards earned through Eddie Bauer’s Adventure Points program will no longer be accepted after March 12.
New York-based Authentic Brands Group owns the Eddie Bauer brand and intellectual property rights worldwide and licenses the brand to Eddie Bauer LLC owner Catalyst Brands. Last month, Authentic transitioned the licenses for Eddie Bauer’s manufacturing, e-commerce and wholesale operations in the US and Canada to a new partner, Outdoor 5, and those operations are not disrupted by the store closings. The Eddie Bauer stores outside of North America are operated by other licensees and are not being impacted.
Eddie Bauer LLC’s Chapter 11 filing was the third bankruptcy action in two decades for the Eddie Bauer stores, following a 2003 filing by its then-owner Spiegel and a 2009 by the Eddie Bauer brand itself, which was later acquired by Golden Gate Capital at an auction.
Photo by Harrison Keely / Wikimedia Commons
