Linens to begin liquidation

CLIFTON, N.J. Linens 'N Things, the struggling home goods retailer, could begin liquidation of its stores as early as Oct. 16, after failing to find a buyer to operate the company.

An auction was scheduled for interested bidders on Oct. 14, but when no buyers submitted a qualified bid, the auction was canceled, according to court documents.

Last week, Linens’ chief restructuring officer Michael Gries asked permission of the bankruptcy court to auction its remaining 371 stores as early as Oct. 14 and begin going-out-of-business sales two days later on the 16th.

The once-public company was purchased and taken private by Apollo Management in 2006.  At the time the deal was consummated, Linens 'N Things, which operated 542 stores in 47 states in the United States and six provinces in Canada, told Retailing Today, "the underlying fundamentals of [the company] remain strong, including strong brand name recognition, attractive real estate locations and the fundamentals of the industry are very favorable."