Eddie Bauer stores file bankruptcy and begin liquidation sales

Driving the news: Eddie Bauer LLC said early Monday in a court filing that it had already begun going-out-of-business sales at its approximately 175 remaining stores.

• The company said it had lined up a restructuring agreement with secured lenders in conjunction with its bankruptcy filing.
• It will pursue a sale that could result in halting the liquidation sales and keeping stores open.

Eddie Bauer's online operation is run separately and is not affected by the bankruptcy.

• Authentic Brands Group, which owns the Eddie Bauer brand, controls the intellectual property and could license it to other organizations.

Zoom in: Marc Rosen, CEO of Catalyst Brands, which runs Eddie Bauer stores through the LLC, said in a statement that the retailer has been facing "declining sales, supply chain challenges and other issues" for an extended period.

• "Over the past year, these challenges have been exacerbated by various headwinds, including increased costs of doing business due to inflation, ongoing tariff uncertainty, and other factors," he said in a statement.
• "While the leadership team at Catalyst was able to make significant strides in the brand, including rapid improvements in product development and marketing, those changes could not be implemented fast enough to fully address the challenges created over several years."