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July 24, 2024

Conns Logo
 
 
Yesterday, Conn’s Inc., DIP filed a voluntary Chapter 11 petition in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas. The Company plans to liquidate. Commenting on the filing, the Debtors stated, "The cost of the Company's approximately 350 leases are exacerbated by the underperforming leased stores and location functionality... After extensive negotiations with lender constituencies, third party lenders, and potential stalking horse purchases, however, the Debtors determined it was not feasible to obtain an actionable transaction that provided for the necessary liquidity to fund a going concern sale process.
 
Going out of business sales began on June 26 and will conclude by October 31, 2024. The Debtors currently operate 553 retail locations, of which 310 are dealer owned stores. See the Company's locations in the below map.
 
 
Conns locations

Darden

Chuys

Darden Restaurants and Chuy's Holdings announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement under which Darden will acquire all outstanding shares of Chuy's for $37.50 per share, representing an enterprise value of about $605 million and a transaction-adjusted EBITDA multiple of 10.3x. The agreement includes a 30-day "go-shop" period that allows Chuy's to solicit alternative proposals. The below chart breaks down the store count for each banner under the two companies:

Olive Garden 923 Yard House 88
Longhorn Steakhouse 597 The Capital Grille 69
Cheddar's Scratch Kitchen 185 Bahama Breeze 45
Chuy's 101 Seasons 52 44
Eddie V's 30

See these stores mapped below:

Darden Chuys acquisition
 

Amazon-1

Amazon is opening two small-format Whole Foods stores (called The Daily Shop) in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of Manhattan (replacing a former Rite Aid.

This will be the second location after the first Daily Shop opens in Manhattan's Upper East Side. Reports say there are five leases in New York City currently in the pipeline. Amazon also operates five locations of its Amazon Go format in New York City.

The Daily Shop stores, designed specifically for urban shoppers, will range from 7,000 to 14,000 square feet and sell produce, prepared foods, and everyday essential grocery items.

  • Whole Foods NYC stores: 17
  • Whole Foods total stores: 529
  • Whole Foods stores in development: 75
  • Amazon Go NYC stores: 5
  • Amazon Go total stores: 22 
 
 
 
 

LA Fitness-1

Fitness International, LLC (LA Fitness) announced its acquisition of fitness chain XSport Fitness; terms of the deal were not disclosed. The deal adds 35 XSport Fitness locations to the Company's existing portfolio. Fitness International said it plans to invest and enhance the new locations while rebranding them under one of its four brand names (LA Fitness, Esporta Fitness, City Sports Club, and Club Studio). The additional locations will expand the Company’s footprint, stretching its presence into the Chicagoland, New York and Virginia territories.

See the adjacent map for the LA Fitness and XSport Fitness locations in the Chicago area, where the Company is roughly doubling its presence.

  • LA Fitness Store Count (total): 580
  • Esporta Fitness: 106
  • City Sports Club: 16
  • XSport Fitness: 35
 
 
Hibbett and JD

JD Sports

Hibbett-1

Hibbett confirmed that shareholders approved the merger transaction with JD Sports Fashion. JD Sports proposed to buy all outstanding shares of Hibbett for $87.50 per share in cash, which represented a 21% premium to the closing price on April 22 when the offer was made public. The transaction is expected to close in 2H24, subject to regulatory approvals.

See the adjacent map for Hibbett's store concentration (963 total stores) in relation to JD Sports, which includes the Finish Line (320), DTLR (245), Shoe Palace (185), and JD Sports (229) banners. 

The information contained in this newsletter is compiled from sources which RetailStat, LLC (“RetailStat”), does not control and unless indicated is not verified. Its contents are not to be divulged. RetailStat, its principals, and writers do not guarantee the accuracy, completeness or timeliness of the information provided nor do they assume responsibility for failure to report any matter omitted or withheld because of their negligence.