In the end, Forever 21 had no choice.
The retailer agreed to an offer of $81 million from a group of buyers including Simon Property nGroup and Brookfield Property Partners, the Wall Street Journal reported Monday. It scrapped an auction after receiving no other qualified bids.
A judge will consider approval of the sale in a Delaware court Tuesday. Forever 21 filed for bankruptcy in September. Last week, a court filing indicated that the retailer had struck a stalking-horse purchase agreement with Simon, Brookfield and brand licensing firm Authentic Brands Group.
The chain, which was controlled by its founders, had expanded its footprint to 800 stores in recent years, even as other retailers were cutting back.
Forever 21’s assets include its ecommerce platforms and brands such as beauty store Riley Rose. Other landlords among its creditors include Vornado Realty Trust, Macerich and Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield.
Earlier Monday, Simon announced it was buying an 80 percent stake in Taubman Centers, the $2 billion mall company run by the Taubman family, which held off Simon’s hostile takeover bid with Westfield in 2003. [WSJ] — Erin Hudson