Luxury movie theater chain iPic Entertainment filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization, months after it opened its eight-screen theater in downtown Delray Beach.
The Delray project, which was in the works for six years, is a factor in iPic’s financial problems, the Palm Beach Post reported. iPic also has locations at Boca Raton’s Mizner Park, North Miami Beach and in other parts of the country. A location was planned for Fort Lauderdale.
The company filed for Chapter 11 a little over a week after it missed a $10.1 million debt payment to the Employees’ Retirement System of Alabama and the Teachers’ Retirement System of Alabama. Boca Raton-based iPic said it secured a $16 million debtor-in-financing loan from the Teachers’ Retirement System of Alabama to keep the company operating.
iPic is in talks with investors, movie theater chains and real estate firms to buy the company, according to the Post. The bankruptcy filing shows that iPic had $291 million in debt and $157 million in assets as of May 15.
It raised $15 million from 818,429 shares priced at $18.50 when it went public last year.
The Delray Beach Community Redevelopment Agency sold the land for the downtown Delray project for $3.6 million, and gave iPic $400,000 in development incentives. iPic founder and CEO Hamid Hashemi said changes to the plans, rising construction costs, taking on additional debt and interest contributed to the company’s financial decline.
In March, Hashemi said he planned to open iPics in Fort Lauderdale, Sunrise and the Miami Design District, according to the Sun Sentinel. [Palm Beach Post] – Katherine Kallergis