American Apparel Hands Out Layoff Notices, Extends Bidding Period

Image courtesy of TheGlassPeople

Twice-bankrupt clothing company American Apparel is in a hurry to get itself sold. While the company had a deal in place to sell to Gildan Activewear even before filing, now it has asked the court to change the auction timetable, but without extending the bidding process as long as its creditors would prefer.

According to Reuters, the clothing company asked the court to extend the deadline for bids to tomorrow. Creditors had proposed a four-week extension, but American Apparel told the court that such a long extension would endanger the bid from Gildan.

The two companies are a weird fit: Gildan’s marketing and its image in general are very modest, especially when compared to some of American Apparel’s racier ads under founder and original CEO Dov Charney.

Gildan has bid on the company’s intellectual property and manufacturing operations, but not on its retail stores, which would go to another buyer or simply liquidate and close. The company’s stores in the United Kingdom and Australia will close after the holidays.

According to a recent report in California Apparel News, American Apparel’s factory employees in Los Angeles have received layoff notices warning them that they’ll be out of a job on Jan. 7, 2017 unless the new owner decides to keep their facility open.

One requirement for bidders is that they be committed to manufacturing clothes in the United States, but that means that the jobs could move anywhere in the country.

By the way, if you want to hear what Dov Charney is up to, the podcast Startup is following him as he starts a few clothing company in Los Angeles.

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