Sycamore Partners LLC made a preliminary bid to buy assets of bankrupt Ascena Retail Group Inc. including the Ann Taylor brand, Bloomberg News reported. The private equity firm is offering to buy the Ann Taylor, Loft and Lane Bryant labels from Ascena. After a string of acquisitions starting in 2009, Mahwah, N.J.-based Ascena was struggling with dated brands and declining revenue even before the coronavirus froze much consumer spending. The company shut its shops in mid-March as the coronavirus outbreak spread, and began to re-open locations in early May as state authorities lifted restrictions. Like other retailers, Ascena’s business was thrown into disarray by COVID-Related closures. The company filed for bankruptcy in July with plans to cull its 2,800 stores to just 1,200.
