NEW YORK - J.C. Penney Co Inc’s landlords are nearing a deal to rescue the beleaguered department store chain from bankruptcy proceedings, averting a liquidation that would have threatened roughly 70,000 jobs and represented one of the most significant business collapses following the coronavirus pandemic, people familiar with the matter said.
Hedge funds and private-equity firms financing J.C. Penney’s bankruptcy, meanwhile, would take ownership of about some of those stores and the company’s distribution centers after forgiving portions of the Plano, Texas-based company’s $5 billion debt load, one of the people said. The lenders, led by H/2 Capital Partners, would own those assets in two separate real estate investment trusts.
The people cautioned that there remained a slim chance the deal could fall apart, which would put J.C. Penney on course for liquidation. Some of the details of the deal, including the number of stores to be preserved, remained fluid, one of the people said. The talks have dragged on for weeks in part amid haggling over lease terms, the people said. In late August, the discussions with Simon and Brookfield reached an impasse, prompting J.C. Penney to ask lenders to take control of its retail operations in addition to the real estate investment trusts they envisioned owning. After further discussions, the company reached a deal with Simon and Brookfield to buy the retail operations.
The problem is 2 much space 4 their limited products. JCPenney needs 2 offer food & services- like hair salons,nail studios 4 the kooky females, Medical checkups and so on.
rofl
Another Landmark going down, so sad!