FAO Inc., the toy retailer that filed
for protection from creditors twice last year, said a bankruptcy
court judge approved the $41 million sale of its New York and Las
Vegas FAO Schwarz stores to a subsidiary of D.E. Shaw & Co.
The purchase price approved by Judge Joel Rosenthal is more
than double what investment and technology development company
D.E. Shaw offered last month when its subsidiary D.E. Shaw
Laminar Portfolios LLC, agreed to buy some FAO Schwarz assets,
including catalogue and Internet businesses. D.E. Shaw raised the
price in an auction on Thursday.
D.E. Shaw said it plans to return FAO Schwarz to a focus on
distinctive, high-end specialty toys. FAO filed for bankruptcy
protection after it offered toys that could be found at discount
retailers such as Target Corp. and failed to compete on prices,
analysts said. The stores are expected to reopen after renovations, which
may take as long as six months.
Bloomberg News
