Major Investor Joins Trans World Board

Albany, N.Y. Trans World Entertainment Corp. has appointed Bryant Riley to the board of directors, the company said Tuesday.

Riley, founder of investment firm Riley Investment Management LLC in California, teamed up with Trans World chairman and CEO Robert J. Higgins a year ago in an effort to take the music, movie and video game chain private.

They ultimately dropped their bid after they weren’t able to secure financing for the deal.

Riley takes a board seat vacated by the retirement of Marty Hanaka, CEO and president, Golfsmith International Holdings Inc.

Riley Investment Management owned about 9.7% of Trans World stock as of the end of September. Riley individually owned 122,000 shares, or 0.4%, of the 31 million outstanding shares.

Riley Investment Management has purchased additional shares since September, according to SEC filings.