Claire’s Stores Inc. missed a bond payment deadline, leaving the troubled retailer owned by Apollo Global Management LLC 30 days to avert a default and possible bankruptcy, Bloomberg News reported on Friday. The company missed $77 million of interest payments due Sept. 15 on some of its notes after one of Claire’s lenders declined to approve a bond exchange that makes up a key part of the chain’s turnaround plan, according to a regulatory filing. The company has a 30-day grace period to come up with the payment. Claire’s also needs the European lender’s consent to get cash “to fund its near-term debt service and other obligations,” the retailer said. Claire’s has been saddled by debt it took on in Apollo’s 2007 leveraged buyout. Read more.
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