Artem Zmitrovich
Started by Richard Sears 126 years ago and now the fading retailer, will Sears get another chance at reviving?
Sears Gets Once More Chance to Survive – Eddie Lampert’s Bid
Three months ago we’ve already tackled the topic of Sears bankruptcy in the article about Sears and Kmart shutting down and still, the fate of the former nation’s largest retailer remains uncertain. Here are some updates on the matter.
According to Reuters, CNBC, and other sources, Sears has received another chance at life. It had become clear after Eddie Lampert’s $5.2 billion bid succeeded in a bankruptcy auction.
The chairman seems to cherish the hope of saving the 126-year-old department store chain through his hedge fund, ESL Investments, as he struggles to keep the slimmed-down company alive.
The agreement still needs to be approved by a U.S. bankruptcy judge. Keeping the company in business means preserving the jobs of 45,000 employees and up to 425 Sears and Kmart department stores. However, an unsecured creditors committee of Sears Holdings believes that this mostly benefits Lampert and ESL.
That’s what the creditors wrote in a note objecting to Eddie Lampert’s bid:
“ESL’s bid to ‘save the company’ is nothing but the final fulfillment of a years-long scheme to deprive Sears and its creditors of assets and its employees of jobs while lining Lampert’s and ESL’s own pockets.”
The scaled-back Sears chain faces the challenge of returning to profitability. It seems that the winning bid is the latest in Lampert’s long list of maneuvers to turn the company around.
Thus, this time will show whether Sears lives or dies. The following court hearing on Lampert’s bid was set to take place in White Plains, New York on Monday morning, February 4. More to the point, US Bankruptcy Court Judge Robert Drain is due to hold a public hearing in the Sears bankruptcy case. The future of Sears is to become clear very soon!
So, will the billionaire’s bid save what is left of Sears? Or better to say will the U.S. judge overseeing the bankruptcy give Eddie Lampert the chance to keep the bankrupt company afloat?
Well, eventually, the judge gave Sears another shot at success, thanks to lambert’s cooperation.
For more about the case, follow this link.
