John Varvatos Files for Bankruptcy

The John Varvatos location in Los Angeles' Century City neighborhood Photo: John Varvatos

RETAIL

By Andrew Asch | Tuesday, May 12, 2020

John Varvatos Photo: Courtesy of John Varvatos

The COVID-19 crisis has pushed prominent apparel-industry names such as Neiman Marcus and J. Crew Group, Inc. into bankruptcy. Recently, another big brand fell victim to COVID-19. The John Varvatos menswear brand filed for voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in District of Delaware.

The New York-headquartered John Varvatos Enterprises Inc. runs a handful of boutiques in retail neighborhoods in California and at blue-chip retail centers such as South Coast Plaza and Malibu Country Mart.

Varvatos had more than $140 million in debt, according to a court filing submitted on May 6. The bankruptcy is part of a plan to sell the company to an affiliate of Lion Capital LLP, which runs offices in Los Angeles and London. Lion is an existing Varvatos investor, label founder John Varvatos said in a statement.

“The agreements with Lion represent a critical step in our process to transform our business to drive long-term, sustainable growth,” John Varvatos said. “We have taken decisive action to respond to the challenges that all retailers face in the present environment and we remain extremely confident that our brand, celebrating its 20th year in business, will emerge even stronger. We have a passionate team, a fierce global consumer following and a commitment to our customers, whom we expect to serve for many years to come.”