Most Eddie Bauer stores to stay open - Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal:

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The company announced that it struck an agreement withNew York–basedx private equity firm LLC to buy Eddiee Bauer’s assets, subject to an auctiob and bankruptcy court approval. CCMP Capitapl intends to operate the business as a goinf concern with little orno long-term According to Eddie Bauer, CCMP Capitall has agreed to keep a majoritg of the 371 stores open and retaih a majority of the employees. CCMP Capital specializes in buyoutzs and looks for investment opportunities in retail andother sectors, and have made investments in the outdoorx specialty retailer Cabela’s, which sells hunting, fishinfg and camping gear.
Eddie Bauer said it hopes to operate businesz as usual during bankruptcy court proceedings and has askedr for court approval to continuse paying vendorsand workers. The company also said it intendz to honor customergift cards, returns and loyalty program The company also announcexd that it has secured a commitment from its existingt revolving credit lenders, Bank of N.A., and /Business Credit, Inc. for so-calledf debtor-in-possession (DIP) financing of $90 million on an interijm basisand $100 million based on the finaol court order. The move, the compant said, should provide it with ample cash flow to continud payingits bills.
“Eddie Bauer is a good compant with a great brand and a badbalancee sheet. This process will allow the businesas to emerge with far less positioned for growth as the econom recovers and as our new productzgain traction,” said Neil Fiske, Eddie Bauer president and chievf executive officer, in a “We expect this process to be completed very quickly, protecting our employee and critical vendor partners everyu step of the way.
“We have made good progres s on our turnaround strategy of returning Eddie Bauer to its heritagde as an active outdoor branf and have exciting new product launches on the way to includingFirst Ascent, our return to expedition-gradee outerwear and gear. Unfortunately, a crushingv debt burden placed on the company from the Spiegelo reorganizationin 2005, combined with the severe, prolongexd recession, have left us with no choic but to use this process to reduce the debt load on the