Item 1.01 Entry into a Material Definitive Agreement.
On December 23, 2020, in connection with the consummation of the 363 Sale (as
defined below), Ascena Retail Group, Inc. (the "Company") entered into the
Transition Services Agreement (as defined below). The information under Item
2.01 below with respect to the Transition Services Agreement is incorporated by
reference into this Item 1.01. The description of the Transition Services
Agreement does not purport to be complete. The description of the Transition
Services Agreement is qualified in its entirety by reference to the copy of the
Transition Services Agreement filed herewith as Exhibit 10.1 and incorporated
herein by reference.
Item 1.02 Termination of a Material Definitive Agreement.
As previously disclosed, AnnTaylor Loft GP Lux S.à r.l. and AnnTaylor Loft
Borrower Lux SCS, each of which are wholly owned indirect subsidiaries of the
Company (the "LuxCos"), entered into a Conditional Assignment Agreement, dated
July 23, 2020 (the "Conditional Assignment Agreement"), with Alter Domus (US)
LLC, in its capacity as incremental collateral agent (the "Agent") on behalf of
the lenders under the Term Credit Agreement, dated as of August 21, 2015 (as
amended, restated, supplemented or otherwise modified from time to time), among
the Company, AnnTaylor Retail, Inc., the lenders party thereto and Goldman Sachs
Bank USA, as administrative agent., which lenders include those who are party to
the Restructuring Support Agreement with the Company and certain of its
subsidiaries. Pursuant to the Conditional Assignment Agreement, upon the
occurrence of certain events set forth therein, the LuxCos had agreed to
irrevocably transfer to the Agent all of their respective personal property and
other assets, including intellectual property, and trademark rights, and the
Agent had agreed to grant Annco, Inc., an indirect subsidiary of the Company, a
license to continue to use such trademark rights.
In connection with the 363 Sale, on December 23, 2020, pursuant to the letter
attached hereto as Exhibit 10.2 (the "LuxCos Termination Agreement"), the
Conditional Assignment Agreement was terminated without any liability,
obligation or penalty incurred by any party to the Conditional Assignment
Agreement as a result of such termination. The foregoing description of the
LuxCos Termination Agreement is qualified in its entirety by reference to the
copy of the LuxCos Termination Agreement filed herewith as Exhibit 10.2 and
incorporated herein by reference.
Item 2.01 Completion of Acquisition or Disposition of Assets.
As previously disclosed, on July 23, 2020, Company and certain of its
subsidiaries filed voluntary petitions (the "Chapter 11 Cases") under chapter 11
of title 11 of the United States Code (the "Bankruptcy Code") in the United
States Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Virginia (the "Bankruptcy
Court"). Also as previously reported, on November 26, 2020, the Company,
together with certain of its subsidiaries (collectively, the "Sellers"), entered
into an asset purchase agreement (the "Asset Purchase Agreement") with Premium
Apparel LLC (the "Purchaser"), an affiliate of Sycamore Partners Management,
L.P.
Pursuant to the Asset Purchase Agreement, on December 23, 2020, the Sellers
completed their sale of assets relating to their Ann Taylor, LOFT, Lane Bryant
and Lou & Grey brands to the Purchaser (the "363 Sale") for approximately $540.0
million, subject to certain customary purchase price adjustments as set forth in
the Asset Purchase Agreement. In addition, the Purchaser assumed certain related
liabilities. The 363 Sale was conducted under the provisions of Section 363 of
the Bankruptcy Code and was approved by the Bankruptcy Court. The Company
anticipates that there will be no proceeds from the 363 Sale available for
distribution to the Company's common stockholders.
In connection with the consummation of the 363 Sale, on December 23, 2020, the
obligations under the Company's debtor-in-possession credit agreements were
repaid in full (but with respect to any outstanding letters of credit under the
debtor-in-possession asset based revolving credit facility, such letters of
credit were cash collateralized, backstopped, replaced, continued under new
credit facilities or otherwise accommodated for), and such credit agreements
were terminated.
Pursuant to the Asset Purchase Agreement, substantially all associates of the
Sellers whose duties are primarily related to the Ann Taylor, LOFT, Lane Bryant
and Lou & Grey brands or the corporate functions of the Sellers are expected to
begin employment with the Purchaser on January 1, 2021. As a result, on
December 23, 2020, the Company entered into a Transition Services Agreement (the
"Transition Services Agreement") with the Purchaser, pursuant to which, among
other things, the Purchaser has agreed to provide the Company with specified
information technology, human resources, financial services, accounting,
corporate, legal, asset protection, logistics and other services, which had
previously been provided by the Sellers' employees in the ordinary course of
business, through confirmation and effectiveness of the Company's plan of
reorganization and during the course of the Company's wind-down and on the terms
and for the fees set forth therein.
The foregoing description of the Asset Purchase Agreement is not complete and is
qualified in its entirety by reference to the Asset Purchase Agreement, a copy
of which is attached to this Current Report on Form 8-K as Exhibit 2.1 and is
hereby incorporated by reference in this Item 2.01.
Item 2.05 Costs Associated with Exit or Disposal Activities.
The Company is currently unable in good faith to make a determination of an
estimate or range of estimates required to be disclosed by paragraph (b), (c) or
(d) of Item 2.05 of Form 8-K with respect to the 363 Sale.
Item 5.02 Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors;
Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers.
On December 23, 2020, in connection with the consummation of the 363 Sale on
such date, the following named executive officers of the Company resigned from
the following positions with the Company: Gary Muto, Chief Executive Officer;
Dan Lamadrid, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer; and Justin
MacFarlane, Executive Vice President and Chief Customer Officer.
Item 7.01 Regulation FD Disclosure.
In connection with the Company's consummation of the 363 Sale, the Company
issued a press release on December 23, 2020, a copy of which is attached to this
Current Report on Form 8-K as Exhibit 99.1.
Item 9.01 Financial Statements and Exhibits.
(d) Exhibits.
Exhibit
Number Description
2.1* Asset Purchase Agreement (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 2.1 to
Current Report on Form 8-K filed on December 1, 2020).
10.1* Transition Services Agreement.
10.2 LuxCos Termination Agreement.
99.1 Press Release issued December 23, 2020.
104 Cover Page Interactive Data File. The cover page XBRL tags are embedded
within the inline XBRL document (contained in Exhibit 101).
* Certain schedules and similar attachments have been omitted. The Company agrees
to furnish a supplemental copy of any omitted schedule or attachment to the
Securities and Exchange Commission upon request.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements or information made within this Current Report on Form 8-K
may constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements are
subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to
differ materially. Forward-looking statements are statements related to future,
not past, events, and often contain words such as "expect," "anticipate,"
"intend," "plan," "believe," "seek," "see," "will," "would," "estimate,"
"forecast," "target," "preliminary" or "range," or similar words.
Forward-looking statements are based only on the Company's current assumptions
and views of future events and financial performance. They are subject to known
and unknown risks and uncertainties, many of which are outside of the Company's
control that may cause the Company's actual results to be materially different
from planned or expected results. Those risks and uncertainties include, but are
not limited to, risks attendant to the bankruptcy process, including the
Company's ability to obtain approval from the Bankruptcy Court with respect to
motions or other requests made to the Bankruptcy Court throughout the course of
the Chapter 11 Cases; the ability of the Company to negotiate, develop, confirm
and consummate a plan of reorganization; the effects of the Chapter 11 Cases,
including increased legal and other professional costs necessary to execute the
Company's reorganization, on the Company's liquidity (including the availability
of operating capital during the pendency of the Chapter 11 Cases); the length of
time that the Company will operate under Chapter 11 protection; and risks
associated with third-party motions in the Chapter 11 Cases. Please refer to the
Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended August 1, 2020
and subsequent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission for a further
discussion of risks and uncertainties. The Company does not undertake to
publicly update or review its forward-looking statements, even if experience or
future changes make it clear that the projected results expressed or implied
will not be achieved.
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