Dallas-based luxury chain Neiman Marcus filed for bankruptcy Thursday, saying the COVID-19 pandemic put “inexorable pressure” on the company just as it was making progress toward long-term growth.
“Prior to COVID-19, Neiman Marcus Group was making solid progress on our journey to long-term profitable and sustainable growth, said Geoffroy van Raemdonck, chairman and CEO of Neiman Marcus Group, in a statement. “We have grown our unrivaled luxury customer base, expanded our industry-leading customer relationships, achieved higher omni-channel penetration, and made meaningful strides in our transformation to become the preeminent luxury customer platform. However, like most businesses today, we are facing unprecedented disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, which has placed inexorable pressure on our business.”
Neiman Marcus reported a loss of $31.2 million in July, compared with a net loss of $19.9 million the previous year. The company has been burdened with nearly $5 billion in debt in part due to two leveraged buyouts in less than 10 years.
Neiman said it reached a restructuring deal with most of its creditors that will eliminate about $4 billion of its existing debt and maintain its operations during the crisis and beyond.
Temporary closures of some Neiman Marcus, Bergdorf Goodman, and Last Call stores have been extended through May 31 to protect the health and safety of customers and associates. The company said it has also furloughed or cut pay for many of its roughly 14,000 employees through the end of the month.
The company operates 43 Neiman Marcus stores, 22 Last Call stores, and two Bergdorf Goodman stores
To implement the restructuring, company has commenced voluntary Chapter 11 proceedings in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas, Houston Division. As part of the process, the company has also secured $675 million in financing from creditors to support it through the bankruptcy process.
The company expects to emerge from bankruptcy in early fall 2020.
“My team and I appreciate the partnership and the steadfast support of all our stakeholders and the Board of Directors through this process,” van Raemdonck said in a release.” The binding agreement from our creditors gives us additional liquidity to operate the business during the pandemic and the financial flexibility to accelerate our transformation. We will emerge a far stronger company. In a world that is changing, we are uniquely positioned to give our brand partners access to our loyal luxury customers like no other company. We will deliver that through the strength of our associate relationships and digital solutions.”
Details on the RSA and Chapter 11 Proceedings
- Certain of the company’s largest creditors have committed to fulfill $675 million in DIP financing during the Chapter 11 proceedings.
- These creditors have also committed to fulfilling a $750 million exit financing package that would fully refinance the DIP financing and provide additional liquidity for the business.
- Upon emergence, the company’s planned capital structure is anticipated to be long-dated with no near-term maturities and to eliminate approximately $4 billion of its existing debt.
- The company’s existing shareholders support the transaction, and, under the agreement, the creditors participating in the RSA will become the majority owners of the company.
- Before the commencement of the Chapter 11 proceedings, new boards of managers were established at two debtor entities, Mariposa Intermediate Holdings LLC and Neiman Marcus Group LTD LLC, to lead the debtors through the restructuring process. Each board of managers is chaired by Mr. van Raemdonck and includes at least one independent manager.
- The company expects to emerge from the process in early Fall 2020.
- Mytheresa is not a part of the Chapter 11 proceedings and will continue to operate independently.
Court filings and other documents related to the Chapter 11 proceedings are available on a separate website administered by the company’s claims agent, Stretto. For inquiries regarding the restructuring, please visit https://cases.stretto.com/NMG.
