A MAJOR retailer is selling off more than 100 stores – five years after it filed for bankruptcy.
A Boston private equity firm is set to pay nearly $1 billion for 119 JCPenney stores.
Florida, Spring Hill, Nature Coast Commons, shopping mall, JC Penney[/caption]
The company had closed more than 200 stores after it filed for bankruptcy during the pandemic[/caption]
The popular retailer faced a bankruptcy filing five years ago in the midst of the pandemic.
This led to the closure of more than 200 of its stores.
But the company is now expecting to sell 119 stores to an affiliate of Onyx Partners, Ltd, USA Today has reported.
This firm is reported to be acquiring these stories for $947 million.
The companies expect to close the deal on September 8.
A Copper Property Trust, which was set up as part of reorganization following the 2020 bankruptcy, said in a news release: “The Buyer has now completed its due diligence, and its deposit under the Agreement is non-refundable.
“The transaction is scheduled to close on or before September 8, 2025, subject to customary real estate closing conditions.
“The Trust intends to distribute the net proceeds to Certificate holders in accordance with the terms of the Trust Agreement following the consummation of the sale.”
The money from this sale will go to JCPenney creditors, USA Today has reported.
JCPenney also scheduled a handful of its stores to close back in May.
The closures affected shops across seven states, including California, Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, New Hampshire, North Carolina, and West Virginia.
However, a JCPenney representative said these closures were due to regular business operations rather than the company’s financial challenges.
“Isolated closures happen from time to time due to expiring lease agreements, market changes, or other factors,” they said.
The company had closed more than 200 stores after it filed for bankruptcy during the pandemic.
All of the 119 stores under the sale agreement are currently in operation, according to USA Today.
It comes as the retail sector in the US faces increasing pressure.
Mass closures and bankruptcies have become increasingly common over the years.
US braces for ‘45,000 store closures’
Some 45,000 bricks-and-mortar stores could close in the next five years, experts have warned.
Several major retailers have announced store closures or gone out of business altogether in recent years.
In 2023, chains such as Foot Locker announced plans to close up to 400 outlets by 2026.
While, other well-known retailers like Tuesday Morning and Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams filed for bankruptcy in 2023.
Bed Bath & Beyond has closed all of its brick-and-mortar stores and is now an online-only retailer.
The most affected retailers have been clothing, consumer electronics, sporting goods, hobby, book, music, and home furnishing stores since the start of 2019.
UBS has predicted the total number of retail stores will drop by 45k from 958k to 913k.
Despite that, the report says that certain stores should thrive while others decline.
It said retailers such as Walmart, Costco, Home Depot, and Target, could be among the winners.
