Women’s apparel retailer The Limited Stores has hired Guggenheim Partners as financial adviser to explore a possible sale, the Wall Street Journal reported today. The retailer, which is backed by Florida private-equity firm Sun Capital Partners Inc., has been struggling recently because of declining traffic at malls and industry headwinds that have led to the recent bankruptcy filings of other retailers. “Limited Stores is exploring a number of options that would provide the company with greater financial flexibility,” a company representative said on Friday. The Limited was founded in 1963 in Columbus, Ohio, and went public in the early 1980s. In 2007, L Brands Inc., the current owner of Victoria’s Secret and Bath & Body Works, agreed to sell a 75 percent stake in the company to Sun Capital. The retail-focused private-equity firm had chipped in $50 million of equity and lined up a $75 million loan to buy Limited Stores. Later in 2010 L Brands sold its remaining 25 percent stake to Sun Capital for roughly $32 million. According to Sun Capital’s website, The Limited, which offers “upscale” branded women’s clothing, has 243 stores throughout the U.S. Read more. (Subscription required.)
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