Posted on 06/24/2020 7:48:13 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
Another retailer has succumbed to bankruptcy during the coronavirus pandemic as health and wellness chain GNC Holdings announced that it has filed for Chapter 11 and will close as many as 1,200 stores as it looks to sell off its business.
Thanks to the impact of the coronavirus, GNC said it was unable to refinance its debt load after what it called a “dramatic negative impact” on its business.
GNC said it will emerge from bankruptcy “expeditiously” as it has the support of its creditors through a restructuring support agreement that will execute more than 92% of its term lenders and 87% of its supporting secured lenders. The company expects to emerge from bankruptcy by the Fall of 2020.
Through the bankruptcy protection filing, the company is looking to restructure its balance sheet and accelerate its business strategy as it looks to position itself for long-term success. The company has secured about $130 in additional liquidity with $100 million in debtor-in-possession financing and $30 million from its existing credit agreement.
The company has also reached an agreement for the sale of its business through its supporting secured lenders and its largest shareholder, Harbin Pharmaceutical Group Holding Co., Ltd. GNC has outlined an agreement for a $760 million purchase price, which will be facilitated through a court-supervised auction that will allow for “higher and better bids” to be offered.
GNC will also “accelerate” the closure of at least 800 to 1,200 underperforming stores, which it previously announced it was closing. GNC has about 5,200 stores located in the U.S. and about 7,300 locations globally.
During the restructuring, GNC will remain open for business and will continue to offer curbside pickup and e-commerce sales. The company will continue to receive a supply of products through its joint venture partner, IVC.
(Excerpt) Read more at ibtimes.com ...
Another retailer has succumbed to bankruptcy during the coronavirus pandemic
************
Bankruptcies in general are rising. The economic fallout from this epidemic is far from over.
We’ll all be working for Amazon when this is over.
Niche. Niche. For the love of all that is holy, the ruddy word is “niche”.
The Radio Shack of the vitamin industry. Why didn’t they just go online to begin with, or maybe negotiated with Walmart to sell their brand in its stores?
Morons
Good. They pissed me off years ago when the cashier argued with me about using their stupid discount cards that expired every few months. By the third time I was sick of filling out another form and said I would rather pay full price. The guy gave me a hard time! I said screw it and walked out. Crappy business model.
We’ll be lucky if we’re working at all. Lots of headwinds still out there and will be for awhile, Fed printing and a levitating stock market notwithstanding. Not much reason for economic optimism IMO.
Did you come up with that? That is a fantastic analogy
Should of stocked some cans of beans etc.
Harbin is in China.
Chinese companies are known to put harmful substitutes in their products.
Good riddance to Guesswhat Nutrition from China.
Yet here you are...a Freeper! That wheat germ was good for you !
You’re right.
Maybe GNC is a good brand in Asia and Harbin is looking to use that. Doubt it will be a good “U.S.” investment now.
“Expect GNC products to be sold primarily by drug store chains like CVS, Walgreens, and Rite Aid very soon.”
Like Craftsman tools. Sad but inevitable, I suppose.
‘It always seemed very nitch and over priced to me.’
not only that, but they were a bitch to work for; I found out the hard way some forty years ago...
‘Headquartered in downtown Pittsburgh where I’m sure there will be some jobs lost.’
established by P-burg businessman David Shakarian, very successful, but a jackass in my humble opinion...
‘They weren’t that great anyways.’
I’ll never forget that horrendous papaya juice they used to push; and they used to make their employees stand outside their ‘lease line’ and harangue people to sample their sunflower seeds...
I used to be regular GNC customer. Then I started ordering supplements from a catalog company called Swanson, and now order from their website. Haven’t been in a GNC for years. Still, I hate to see another retailer fail due to COVID shutdowns.
WAAAAAAY overpriced inventory. The only surprise here is that it took so long for them to implode.
I think Amazon killed them with better pricing.
That and direct air mail from China most likely.
The vitamin and supplement business is a mafia set up. Huge margins.
Swanson is AWESOME.
Been ordering from them for years and love them.
Not surprised. The only thing GNC was really good for was selection available right now at retail. Their pricing in my experience is worse than CVS at full price, and I’d only buy there on a BOGO sale. If you can wait it’s far better to buy online.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.