The Rockport Company, LLC, along with nine (9) affiliates and subsidiaries, has filed a petition for relief under Chapter 11 in the Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware (Lead Case No. 18-11145). Rockport, based in West Newton, MA, is a designer, distributor and retailer of comfort footwear in more than fifty (50) markets worldwide. According to the First Day Declaration, Rockport enters Chapter 11 intending to sell substantially all of its assets under Section 363 of the Bankruptcy Code, with CB Marathon Opco, LLC, an affiliate of Charlesbank Equity Fund IX, Limited Partnership, serving as stalking horse bidder; the Debtors intend to file a Bid Procedures Motion in the coming days. Rockport is also seeking approval of up to $80 million in DIP Financing provided by its prepetition lenders, of which $20 million will be new money, with the remainder being used to roll up the Debtors’ prepetition ABL facility. Rockport has also filed a motion seeking to have Rockport Blocker, LLC, appointed to serve as foreign representative of the Debtors in any ancillary restructuring proceedings filed by the Debtors internationally; the Motion also discloses that the Debtors intend to file an ancillary proceeding under Part IV of the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice (Canada). Prime Clerk is the proposed claims and noticing agent. The cases have been assigned to the Honorable Laurie Selber Silverstein.
Contact Norman L. Pernick, G. David Dean or Myles R. MacDonald for more information regarding this matter. Please note, however, that Cole Schotz P.C. does not represent the debtors in these cases and cannot respond to questions directed toward the debtors.