The manufacturer of Hoover and Dirt Devil brand vacuum cleaners was the winning bidder for rival Oreck in a bankruptcy auction on Monday, offering at least $24.4 million to outbid members of the Oreck family, Reuters reported yesterday. The bankrupt pioneer of the upright vacuum went on the auction block with an opening bid that included about $14.5 million in cash from a group led by Tom Oreck, a former chief executive of the company founded by his father. The total value of Tom Oreck's bid, which included various assumed liabilities, was estimated in court documents at about $22 million. The details of the winning bid will be made public before a hearing to approve the sale, which is scheduled for July 16.
