Crumbs Reaches Acquisition Agreement with Marcus Lemonis and Fischer Enterprises Joint Venture as Part of Company's Voluntary Chapter 11 Filing
Company has Obtained Commitment for DIP Financing from Joint Venture
NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
Crumbs Bake Shop, Inc. ("Crumbs") (OTC Pink:CRMB), a New York based
cupcake specialty store chain, today announced that it has entered into
an Asset Purchase Agreement through which Lemonis Fischer Acquisition
Company, LLC, a joint venture created by Marcus Lemonis LLC and Fischer
Enterprises, L.L.C., will acquire the Crumbs' business as part of the
Company's filing of voluntary Chapter 11 petitions in the United States
Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Jersey.
Lemonis Fischer Acquisition Company, which provided pre-petition secured
financing to Crumbs, has also committed to provide debtor-in-possession
("DIP") financing to the Company, subject to court approval. The
agreement with Lemonis Fischer Acquisition Company comprises the initial
stalking horse bid in the Court-supervised auction process under Section
363 of the Bankruptcy Code. Under the terms of the Asset Purchase
Agreement, Lemonis Fischer Acquisition Company would acquire
substantially all of Crumbs' assets. The Company hopes to complete the
sale process in approximately 60 days, pending receipt of the necessary
approvals from the Bankruptcy Court.
"We are very pleased to have reached this agreement with Lemonis and
Fischer after carefully evaluating opportunities to strengthen Crumbs'
financial position in order to ensure a strong future for the Crumbs
brand and business," said Edward M. Slezak, Crumbs Chief Executive
Officer and General Counsel. "The steps we are taking today will allow
us to continue to execute our business strategy, expand our licensing
business and position ourselves to move toward a franchise store model.
We remain saddened that we were forced to cease operations before this
agreement was reached, but we strongly believe that pursuing this sale
through the chapter 11 process is ultimately in the best interest of the
Company and its stakeholders."
"I truly believe in the Crumbs brand and am excited to help the Company
enter into a new chapter in its history," said Marcus Lemonis, host of
CNBC's The Profit series and CEO of Camping World and Good Sam
Enterprises. "I think there is tremendous opportunity to expand the
Crumbs offering, build on the Company's growth strategy and to leverage
the synergies between Crumbs and other companies in my and the Fischers'
portfolio, such as Dippin' Dots ice cream, Doc Popcorn, Wicked Good
Cupcakes, Little Miss Muffin, Betty Lou's snacks, a host of gluten-free
baked goods, Matt's Cookies, Pie King, Key West Key Lime Pies, Mr. Green
Tea Ice Cream, Sweet Pete's Candy and Coffee of Grace (Grace Hightower
De Niro), as well as a new exciting product from an episode of the
upcoming fall season of CNBC's The Profit."
"Fischer Enterprises is excited to partner with Marcus Lemonis in the
next phase of its evolving relationship with Crumbs," said Scott
Fischer, C.O.O., Fischer Enterprises. "We strongly feel that the team
we've put together has the business experience and industry know-how to
improve Crumb's product mix, broaden its consumer appeal and make the
Company a profitable business concern going forward."
Lemonis Fischer Acquisition Company and Crumbs will evaluate the retail
strategy with the goal of reopening select locations or opening new
locations in the future. Additionally, Mr. Slezak will remain with the
Company throughout the process in order to ensure a smooth emergence and
transition.
As previously communicated, Crumbs had historically implemented a retail
expansion strategy that was ultimately proven unsustainable. In the past
year, the company had begun shifting its growth strategy to focus on
licensing and franchising opportunities and has been successful in
signing new licensees for its baked goods, as well as new products
including Crumbs branded bake mix, bakeware, coffee and gourmet popcorn.
While Crumbs has made tremendous progress in expanding its distribution
channels and avenues for growth in recent months, the Board of Directors
and management ultimately decided to pursue a sale of the business
through the chapter 11 process in order to give Crumbs the flexibility
to focus on new opportunities for the benefit of the business and its
stakeholders.
Interested parties can access additional information about the Company's
chapter 11 filing and sale process at http://cases.primeclerk.com/crumbs.
Glass Ratner is serving as Crumbs' financial advisor and the law firm
Cole, Schotz, Meisel, Forman & Leonard P.A. is serving as Crumbs' legal
advisor.
About Crumbs
The first Crumbs bake shop opened in March 2003 on the Upper West Side
of Manhattan and is well known for its innovative and oversized gourmet
cupcakes.
Crumbs Media:
FTI Consulting
Leigh Parrish, 212-850-5651
leigh.parrish@fticonsulting.com
or
Marcus
Lemonis Media:
Karen Porter, 917-215-8636
kporter@MarcusLemonis.com
or
Fischer
Enterprises Media:
Gooden Group PR
Meg Martin, 405-397-6156
mmartin@goodengroup.com
Source: Crumbs Bake Shop, Inc.
News Provided by Acquire Media
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