NEW YORK – Borders Group, the second-largest U.S. bookstore chain that also sells DVDs, CDs and the like, has cancelled a bankruptcy court auction amid a dearth of bids.??
After it failed to line up new suitors after talks with a private equity investor fell apart last week, the company will on Thursday ask for court approval for a sale to liquidators Hilco and Gordon Brothers, it said Monday afternoon.??
The liquidation of the company’s remaining 399 stores could start on Friday, said Borders, which has 10,700 employees.?? The liquidation process is expected to be completed by the end of September.??
It had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in February.
“Following the best efforts of all parties, we are saddened by this development,” said Borders president Mike Edwards. “We were all working hard towards a different outcome, but the headwinds we have been facing for quite some time, including the rapidly changing book industry, eReader revolution, and turbulent economy, have brought us to where we are now.”??
The Wall Street Journal said the auction had been scheduled for Tuesday, but no bidders emerged after talks with private equity investor Jahm Najafi had collapsed.?
Email: Georg.Szalai@thr.com
Twitter: @georgszalai
