Case Studies

RETAIL/RESTAURANTS:

Party City

CHALLENGE

Party City Holdco Inc. (PCHI)—North America’s largest vertically integrated designer, manufacturer, distributor, and retailer of party goods—filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection following pandemic-era disruptions in sales, supply chains and liquidity. A&G took charge of a massive, fast-paced portfolio-optimization plan focused on significant cost reductions, right-sizing the footprint and creating lease-term optionality.

APPROACH

A&G Co-President Andy Graiser and his team renegotiated hundreds of Party City leases to improve lease terms and also auctioned closed stores’ leases to landlords, retailers and investors.

RESULT

By optimizing Party City’s store footprint and improving lease terms, A&G saved PCHI nearly $300 million in a major contribution to the overall restructuring process. Party City emerged from Chapter 11 and announced that it had eliminated almost $1 billion in debt. The retailer hired a new CEO, developed a new store format, began reopening select stores with the new design, and announced plans to continue the rollout across the country. Party City continues to operate approximately 750 stores.

Said Graiser: “This was an enormously satisfying project that saved thousands of jobs and helped a household name in American retailing reposition itself after the most challenging economic disruption in recent memory.”

David’s Bridal

CHALLENGE

David’s Bridal was in danger of liquidation and had already signaled to its workforce that layoffs were on the horizon. The national retailer asked A&G to secure millions of dollars in rent concessions and abatements. The kicker: A&G Co-President Andy Graiser and his team had only eight days to complete this emergency project with the Fourth of July included in that window.

“The investment bank was successful in restructuring the debt in conjunction with A&G’s occupancy cost savings result,” Graiser explained.

APPROACH

Leveraging decades of experience with portfolio-optimization, the A&G team went into overdrive to help the retailer realize value from the stores it was closing and lower costs associated with the leases it was keeping.

RESULT

The investment bank succeeded in its longshot bid, and David’s Bridal announced that New York-based CION Investments had acquired essentially all of its assets. “The upshot was that David’s Bridal survived,” Graiser explained. “The company was able to keep on operating about 195 stores and save thousands of jobs. It was absolutely one of the most challenging and rewarding projects I have worked on in my 30-year career. Ever professional stakeholder, company executive, bank and landlords needed to be in lockstep throughout the short restructuring process for the sale to close.”

Said David’s Bridal CFO Charles Lockyer III: “A&G quickly developed a comprehensive strategy to achieve our objectives, relentlessly executed as a cohesive team, and adapted as the situation evolved to produce an exceptional result under extreme time constraints. Securing significant rent concessions from our landlords was a critical factor in David’s remaining a going concern and we are grateful for the expertise, determination, and professionalism that A&G provided. I would recommend them to anyone.”

Bed Bath & Beyond / buybuy BABY

CHALLENGE

Facing nearly $2 billion in debt, 52-year-old Bed Bath & Beyond (BBB) filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and, ultimately, moved to close its 360 Bed Bath & Beyond stores and 120 Buy Buy Baby locations. A&G was retained to auction store and warehouse leases bolster the recovery for creditors.

APPROACH

A&G’s marketing campaign emphasized the many desirable, strategically located stores in the portfolio as well as their high visibility and strong traffic. Another message that resonated with a wide array of operators was the tremendous diversity of size ranges in play (anywhere from 18,000 to 92,000 square feet). Landlords eager to recapture and backfill vacant spaces, either with single large-format tenants or to subdivide , also showed strong interest.

RESULT

A&G’s sales of dozens of retail and warehouse leases exceeded the valuation by $10 million. Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. President & CEO Sue Gove described A&G as “thoughtful and collaborative partners supporting the development and execution of our real estate strategy, refining our approach with our landlord partners, and importantly, delivering very strong results.”

Chico’s FAS

CHALLENGE

Known for its Chico’s, White House Black Market and Soma brands, Chico’s FAS, Inc., needed to respond to the massive impacts of Covid 19 by strengthening its liquidity and enhancing its financial stability. As part of this effort, the company enlisted A&G to reduce occupancy costs across its 1,373-store portfolio in the United States and Canada.

APPROACH

A&G engaged hundreds of landlords to help Chico’s FAS restructure its portfolio amid strategic store closings.

RESULT

A&G’s efforts in 2020 alone delivered $65 million in savings for the retailer, along with an additional $15 million the following year. “These were true rent abatements at a time when the majority of retailers were pursuing short-term rent-deferrals,” noted A&G Co-President Andy Graiser.

Having improved its balance sheet across multiple parameters—real estate included—Chico’s FAS was able to obtain $300 million in new financing. Molly Langenstein, President and CEO, noted that the company was “continuing to benefit from the aggressive measures” initiated to “streamline the organization and reduce operating and occupancy costs.”

In January 2024, Private equity firm Sycamore Partners, which specializes in retail, consumer and distribution-related investments, announced that it had acquired Chico’s FAS for approximately $1 billion.

A&G continued to advise the retailer on its real estate growth strategy and portfolio optimization until the successful sale to Sycamore.

GNC

CHALLENGE

Amassing more than $900 million in debt and with many stores located in regional malls, GNC filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection just a few months before the Covid-19 pandemic forced mall closures nationwide. GNC executives and the company’s financial advisors hired A&G to execute a portfolio restructuring plan.

APPROACH

Acting swiftly on behalf of the vitamin and nutritional supplement retailer, A&G engaged in lease-restructuring negotiations with landlords across the country.

RESULT

At the end of the process, which won several industry awards, A&G had restructured more than 1,175 GNC leases, saving the company $170 million. “The adjusted strategy and subsequent messaging to the landlord community kept locations open and saved jobs,” said A&G Co-President Andy Graiser. “Our team and other stakeholders—such as company management, the investment bank, the attorneys and the financial advisors—worked tirelessly and showed extraordinary dedication during the GNC process.”

The court in September 2020 approved GNC’s $770 million sale to Harbin Pharmaceutical Group. The retailer emerged from bankruptcy protection a month later.

OFFICE DEPOT

CHALLENGE

In 2009, Office Depot, an office supply retailer, retained DJM Realty, the predecessor to A&G Real Estate Partners, to close over 100 unprofitable stores. In 2013, Office Depot merged with OfficeMax, acquiring 823 stores, 600 of which were closed due to lease expirations and sales transfers that made closing sister stores with term necessary. Closed stores with term remaining went to A&G, with the challenge of mitigating the remaining leasehold liability on over 300 closed Office Depot/OfficeMax locations. We faced two primary challenges: leases had very little term remaining, and rents were higher than the current market.

APPROACH

A&G tapped its network of local brokers and like-sized retailers and embarked on a marketing program that resulted in numerous subleases and lease terminations. Where subleases or assignments were not possible, third-party deals were created, resulting in direct deals between tenants and landlords.

RESULT

These direct leases came about due to termination payments to the landlord by Office Depot based on pre-established assumptions and budgets. A&G worked closely with Office Depot and the local brokers to form these assumptions so that accounting could rely on them for expectations. Those assumptions and expectations are updated regularly. To date, A&G has maintained this partnership for over 10 years, mitigating millions of dollars in leasehold liability.

MATTRESS FIRM

CHALLENGE

When Mattress Firm filed for Chapter 11, A&G was engaged to reduce occupancy costs for 2,700 stores with 2,200 landlords in 41 days as part of a prepackaged Chapter 11. We had to swiftly develop a user-friendly system for a 20-person deal team to execute, process, and track hundreds of documents flowing through our system on a weekly basis. Such a project was unprecedented and required a highly efficient and unique approach.

APPROACH

The project required intense attention to process in order for us to effectively negotiate. A&G developed a very sophisticated model in conjunction with Mattress Firm, which included store closings in respective markets, and the impact on sales transfers and online sales. The models were built to avoid store closings, if possible, which was paramount to the company business plan. Our success was due to the strategies implemented, systems created, agility of the deal team, and seamless 24/7 communication with our client.

RESULT

In total, 1,500 deals were completed in less than 2 months, realizing savings in excess of $300MM. The chain emerged from bankruptcy, and today is thriving.

TOYS R US

CHALLENGE

When Toys”R”Us, a toy, clothing, and baby product retailer, originally engaged A&G, it was to negotiate rent reductions with the landlord community as it planned to emerge from Chapter 11. A&G negotiated over $100MM before the debtor announced it would be liquidating. After that, A&G was tasked with disposing of the majority of the company’s real estate during the liquidating Chapter 11 bankruptcy case. This included about 700 of the retail locations in the United States, plus four of the eight distribution centers. Of note: 274 retail boxes were company-owned sites, the rest were leased.

APPROACH

A&G devised a liquidation strategy, which included multiple auctions depending on lender group collateral and property type. This resulted in six auctions from the spring to the fall of 2018 at the offices of debtor’s council, with A&G organizing and executing the auction process, acting as broker and auctioneer.

RESULT

A&G raised $98MM in lease sales to users, investors, and current landlords seeking control of their space. Company-owned retail box proceeds raised via auction were approximately $500MM. The four distribution centers handled by A&G sold for $233MM.

BON-TON

CHALLENGE

A&G was retained by Bon-Ton, a department store chain founded in 1898, to sell 22 fee-owned department store boxes, a distribution center, and an e-commerce facility primarily located in the Midwest. While marketing the assets beginning May of 2018, we were challenged with a retail environment with thousands of store closures, and numerous other department store and big-box retailers announced bankruptcies and closures. Furthermore, users were sparse, and Bon-Ton demographics were significantly inferior to other department store closings.

APPROACH

A&G performed an exceedingly thorough due diligence review of every asset and market, including visiting each site and meeting with local brokers, developers, and economic development agencies and their respective municipalities. In addition, we reviewed all supporting documentation and REAs, oversaw and assisted with the management of each property, and collaborated with counsel to achieve property tax relief and other cost savings. A&G also utilized the media to gain exposure for Bon-Ton’s situation. To the extent possible, each purchase agreement had seller rights to continue marketing and shorten diligence periods if additional interest was generated during a diligence period.

RESULT

Prior to retaining A&G, the seller was advised by other real estate professionals to anticipate receiving between $50MM and $60MM in total value. A&G exceeded all expectations and raised nearly $90MM, with an orderly liquidation process balancing between holding out for maximum value while limiting unnecessary carry costs.on

SOUTHEASTERN GROCERS

CHALLENGE

Southeastern Grocers is comprised of three supermarket chains including Winn-Dixie, BI-LO, and Harvey’s. Their portfolio of 750 stores included a number of closed stores with ongoing lease and rent obligations as well as locations with upcoming lease expirations. In 2016, A&G Real Estate Partners was hired to mitigate Southeastern Grocers’ future occupancy cost exposure with respect to closed stores, and to restructure leases on operating stores with upcoming lease expirations to better align occupancy costs to sales.

APPROACH

A&G devised a plan to retain and actively manage local brokers in each market to identify tenants interested in the closed stores. A number of interested tenants were identified and introduced to landlords with offers to terminate leases and/or sublease the space from Southeastern Grocers. For the leases with upcoming expirations, A&G used a capitalization rate compression pitch, whereby the value created through the extension of the term was converted into lower rent in order to induce landlords to enter into lease extensions while lowering the occupancy cost for Southeastern Grocers.

RESULT

Of the portfolio of 36 stores assigned to A&G, seven closed store leases were terminated or subleased, and early lease extensions with rent reductions were successfully negotiated on nine stores.

SBARRO

CHALLENGE

When Sbarro, a pizzeria chain that specializes in New York-style pizza and other Italian cuisine, filed for Chapter 11, they needed to close 230 sites, franchise 59 sites, and restructure more than 100 leases. A&G was engaged to conceive an approach and then manage the process in a tight 90-day time period.

APPROACH

The project required a fast-tracked and closely monitored bankruptcy exit plan that included meeting with the top-five landlords and taking their input to devise a real estate plan to optimize the Company’s cash flows. A&G’s highly efficient team was successful due to the strategies implemented, agility of the deal team, and our collaboration and consistent client communication.

RESULT

Three months after Sbarro filed for Chapter 11, it exited bankruptcy and credited A&G with having saved the pizza chain in excess of $6.5MM.

HOTELS/RESORTS:

William Vale Hotel

CHALLENGE

A&G and global real estate investment bank Eastdil Secured were tasked with marketing for sale the luxury William Vale Hotel in Brooklyn’s Williamsburg neighborhood, following a three-year ownership restructuring and litigation process led by All Year Holdings Ltd. CRO Asaf Ravid.

APPROACH

A&G and Eastdil launched a global marketing campaign targeted at likely bidders in the hospitality sector. The campaign emphasized the considerable strengths of the skyline-defining, 183-key, 21-story asset, which at the time was one of just four luxury hotels in Brooklyn. Bidders responded to the hotel’s recent construction—it was built in 2016—as well as its mixed-use dimension (top-shelf eateries by restaurateur Andrew Carmellini, 7,300 square feet of high-end indoor and outdoor function spaces, and multiple storefronts and offices).

Securing a stalking-horse bidder to drive higher interest among bidders and bolster the recovery was a key component of the strategy.

RESULT

The William Vale Hotel sold for $177 million to stalking-horse bidder EOS Hospitality, a New York-based, full-service hospitality company with a diverse portfolio of hotels across the United States. The court-approved bankruptcy sale resulted in full payment of all outstanding secured bonds—in fact, bondholders received 116% on the dollar.

EDUCATION:

THE COLLEGE OF NEW ROCHELLE

CHALLENGE

The College of New Rochelle (CNR) in Westchester County, N.Y., was in financial distress and needed to avoid a precipitous shutdown while negotiating an interim campus leasing agreement with Mercy College.

A&G and a JV partner were tapped to market for sale the college’s substantial real estate assets, a 15.6-acre, 20-building campus with more than 425,000 square feet of buildings. The process needed to be organized and deliberate, as opposed to an abrupt “fire sale.”

APPROACH

A&G and its JV partner collaborated with CNR to identify assets that were most likely to generate immediate cash. The firms ran a competitive marketing and sale process that encouraged multiple bidders to go toe-to-toe for the assets. This followed earlier real estate moves designed to “build runway” that included selling non-core assets located near the school, as well as a sale-leaseback of CNR’s Bronx satellite campus.

RESULT

The main campus sold for $32 million to trustees of the Masonic Hall & Asylum Fund, which announced plans for senior housing and educational facilities. All told, three bidders offered more than $30 million in the competitive sale process, which illustrated the strong market value of CNR’s real estate.

BRIARCLIFFE COLLEGE/BLUE POINT BREWERY

CHALLENGE

Briarcliffe College needed to monetize a 54,000-square-foot building in downtown Patchogue, Long Island, and hired A&G to land a replacement tenant.

APPROACH

A&G Co-President Emilio Amendola and members of his real estate sales team looked for large-format operators that might be intrigued by the downtown setting and authentic atmosphere of the red-brick 19th-century former department store building, with its soaring ceilings and an iconic clock tower.

RESULT

A&G found a taker from a fast-growing sector—craft beer. But doing the deal required close landlord cooperation, because tenants such as a coffee shop and a deli also occupied the two-level building. “The landlord had to buy out both tenants because they had leases that went on for five or seven years,” Amendola explained.

Blue Point Brewery, the oldest on Long Island, relocated from River Avenue to the West Main Street building, which was once used by the college for dental hygienist classes. The brewery reportedly invested $35 million in the nautical-themed space, with its tasting room, restaurant, a beer garden, towering beer tanks and catwalk for visitors.

“On behalf of the college, we terminated the existing leases for pennies on the dollar,” Amendola noted. “The brewery has contributed greatly to the ongoing renaissance of downtown Patchogue. It was a win-win for all parties involved.”

ITT Education Services

CHALLENGE

ITT Educational Services, Inc., a for-profit technical school with 38 campuses nationwide and over 35,000 students, filed Chapter 7 Bankruptcy in September of 2016. Shortly thereafter, A&G was hired by the Lender, Cerberus Capital Management, to value the properties and was subsequently hired by the Trustee to dispose of 31 of the owned properties.

APPROACH

A&G devised a liquidation plan to pay back the Lender by March 15, 2017, through the sales of the property. We recommended marketing the properties individually, as opposed to a bulk buyer, and conducted a national marketing and sales campaign to sell them all.

RESULT

The Lender was paid back in full on March 8, 2017. Several bulk bids were received in the $40–$45MM-dollar range. A&G sold the 31 properties, achieving sales prices in excess of $87,000,000; roughly 20% above the initial estimate of value.

THEATERS/ENTERTAINMENT:

Regal Cinemas (U.S. portfolio of Cineworld Group)

CHALLENGE

Facing $8.9 billion in debt, including $4 billion in lease liabilities, after the Covid-19 pandemic, U.K.-based Cineworld Group (the world’s second-largest theater chain and owner of Regal Cinemas in the United States) filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

The company tasked A&G Real Estate Partners with executing landlord negotiations (including lease-restructuring and terminations) for Regal Cinemas.

APPROACH

A&G met with landlords across the United States in an award-winning effort that required a full-court-press and long hours from the A&G team. Meanwhile, the company’s financial advisors and debtors attorney focused on completing a complex restructuring transaction with the lenders. Their effort involved multifaceted analyses and strategic consulting related to DIP financing, liquidity, business strategy, and even a new agreement for a critical source of revenue—on-screen advertising.

RESULT

At the end of the process, lenders acquired the newly reorganized, U.K.-based Cineworld Group and its Regal Cinemas U.S. division in a debt-for-equity swap that reduced funded indebtedness by approximately $4.53 billion, raised $800 million in new equity capital, and secured $1.71 billion in new debt financing. “Today, the second-biggest movie cinema chain behind AMC Theatres looks well clear of that pandemic-era cliff, having greatly lightened its debt load as it rides Hollywood’s box office recovery,” noted The Hollywood Reporter in February 2024.

Real estate optimization played a significant role in the turnaround, which “benefited the theater industry, consumers, landlords and thousands of theater employees,” noted A&G Co-President Andy Graiser.

Commenting on A&G’s performance, Regal’s Senior Vice President of Real Estate Todd Boruff said: “They are results-driven, handled our landlords in a professional manner, and took a lot of stress off the table for Regal by handling a large number of deals in a short amount of time.” He further described the A&G team as “tenacious, professional, organized, and educated on the bankruptcy process.”

MIXED PORTFOLIO:

BRODIE

CHALLENGE

As part of the Chapter 11 bankruptcy of Brodie Holdings LLC and related entities, trustee Zvi Guttman and legal counsel Richard M. Goldberg of Shapiro Sher , retained A&G to sell 21 properties in Maryland, Delaware and Florida. The assets were formerly owned by the late Zebulon J. and Beatrice Brodie.

In addition to multiple retail, warehouse/industrial, mixed-use and office properties, the bankruptcy auction included a nearly 30-acre waterside family compound on the Maryland shore with its equestrian building and riding area, main house, pool and guest cottage.

APPROACH

A&G launched a comprehensive marketing campaign focused on likely buyers for the middle-market real estate assets. The firm’s real estate sales division established a bid-deadline and sale structure designed to maximize competition and interest.

RESULT

The marketing campaign triggered inquiries from more than 560 prospective buyers across the country, nearly 50 of which placed baseline, qualifying and/or prevailing bids, some for multiple properties.

Thirteen different buyers secured properties at auction after two rounds of intense bidding. When the final gavel hit, 20 of the 21 properties received higher bids than the initial baseline offering. All told, the sale sparked 77 qualified bids and created a gain for the creditors of more than 50 percent over baseline, or approximately $6.3 million.

Engaged bidders included investors, commercial tenants and even local residents looking to buy homes. “Competition creates value, and that's exactly what happened during this sale process,” A&G Co-President Emilio Amendola said at the time.

U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Thomas J. Catliota lauded A&G’s three-month execution of the portfolio sale, describing the process as “well-run” and noting its tight timetable. A&G, the judge said, executed “a very thorough marketing effort to create a market when there was a need to act very quickly … the process has been greatly successful in the view of the Trustee and his professionals, and it seems to me that is exactly correct.”

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A&G Real Estate Partners
445 Broadhollow Road
Suite 410, Melville, NY 11747
631-420-0044

A&G Real Estate Partners
445 Broadhollow Road
Suite 410, Melville, NY 11747
631-420-0044

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WHAT WE DO
SECTORS
ACTIVE PROJECTS
REAL ESTATE FOR SALE
WHO WE ARE
CLIENTS