Gordon Brothers helped convert the Bombay Company business into an asset-light, licensed structure after the company decided to wind-down its operations through bankruptcy. We managed the wind-down of 133 U.S. and 50 Canadian stores, including disposing of the inventory and real estate assets. Throughout the bankruptcy process and preceding it, we also provided related support services, including real estate portfolio valuations, lease restructurings, mitigations and dispositions, as well as owned property sales.

In our extensive dealings with the company, we determined that the Bombay brand held significant and unrealized value due to its intensive working capital model. As a result, we purchased the brand assets, alongside our partners during the wind-down process. Following the acquisition and the disposition of surplus hard assets, we migrated the business model from a “build/sell” approach to a more efficient “license/royalty” business model. The transformation allowed investors to benefit from broad consumer recognition of the Bombay brand while reducing working capital requirements and diverting operating risks to third party licensees.

The brand was licensed and ultimately sold to a large international firm that acted as the master licensee and successfully repositioned and managed the brand. Over the years, we maintained a consulting role to support the strategy and merchandising. Today the brand has found new life and relevance among consumers.