Suitors to pay $325M for Brooks Brothers

Brooks Brothers, the venerable retailer that was founded in 1818 and filed for bankruptcy last month, said that it would be sold to Simon Property Group, the biggest mall operator in the United States, and Authentic Brands Group, a licensing firm.

The $325 million offer for Brooks Brothers, up from a $305 million bid last month from the same suitors, is subject to court approval this week, the companies said in a statement late Tuesday. The buyers committed to continue operating at least 125 Brooks Brothers retail stores. Before the pandemic, the company operated 424 retail and outlet stores globally, including 236 in the United States, according to court documents.

The offer for Brooks Brothers came from an entity known as the Sparc Group, a joint venture between Simon Property and Authentic Brands Group. The mall owner and Authentic Brands have teamed up on deals to buy other bankrupt retailers in recent years, including the teen apparel chain Aeropostale and the fast-fashion behemoth Forever 21. Sparc also has bid on Lucky Brand, the denim company that filed for bankruptcy last month. Authentic Brands is known for acquiring the intellectual property of brands like Barneys New York and Sports Illustrated, then licensing their names to other companies and earning royalties from related products.

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The coronavirus outbreak has toppled several storied retail brands, especially those focused on apparel, as many stores were forced to temporarily close and demand for new clothing dropped in a remote, less social environment.

Brooks Brothers, based in New York, is the oldest apparel brand in continuous operation in the United States, and has a rare and storied reputation. It has dressed all but four presidents dating to James Madison, has been worn by Clark Gable and Andy Warhol, and is the official clothier of the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra. Abraham Lincoln was wearing a Brooks Brothers coat the night he was assassinated.

It was revived in the past two decades by Italian industrialist Claudio Del Vecchio, who bought it in 2001. The retailer started to slip in recent years, battered by the rise of more casual workplace attire and the shift to online retail, prompting a search for new buyers or investors.

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