Express, which came close to being totally liquidated, is being rescued out of bankruptcy court.
A stalking horse bidder, composed of brand management firm WHP Global and three of the retailer’s key landlords — Simon Property Group, Brookfield Properties and Centennial Real Estate — got its offer for the online and store operations of the specialty retailer approved by Delaware bankruptcy court on Friday morning.
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According to court papers, the total purchase price was approximately $174 million, consisting of $136 million in cash consideration and $38 million of assumed liabilities.
Friday was the deadline for Express to come up with a white knight/restructuring plan. If that deadline wasn’t met, a mass liquidation of the business would have ensued. Express filed a voluntary bankruptcy petition on April 22. The only other bidder was Hilco, which would have liquidated the business.
Once one of the nation’s hottest specialty chains, Express has been on a roller-coaster ride for two decades, beset by a swirl of management changes, mixed fashion messages and declining sales.
WHP already controlled Express’ intellectual property following a 2023 deal that put the brand into a joint venture. Simon and Brookfield have about 200 Express stores at their centers and have an interest in keeping the business viable.
After Express went bankrupt, RCS Real Estate Advisors quickly renegotiated more than 190 Express leases with landlords other than Simon and Brookfield, reducing rents to be more aligned with sales levels, altering expiration dates and reaching other terms. RCS represents retailers in restructurings, whether the business is bankrupt or not, and helps retailers negotiate new leases, renew leases and get out of leases.
Technically, an auction process was established but apparently no bidders other than Hilco and Phoenix emerged.
Aside from Simon, Centennial and Brookfield, other developers housing significant numbers of Express stores are Macerich, URW (Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield), CBL, Pyramid and Tanger.
Express is concentrated in shopping centers and does not have many street locations, but it did have one prominent location in New York’s Times Square. Express held a going-out-of-business sale and exited the location, along with many others. Reportedly, the Times Square store, among the specialty chain’s glitziest, never made a profit because of the rent in Times Square, which can run to $2,000 a square foot.