NexCen gets two bids for Waverly brand - NY Post
July 2 (Reuters) - NexCen Brands Inc NEXC.O has received two bids for its Waverly home furnishings brand within the past week, each of them close to $30 million, the New York Post said, citing sources.
One of the bids is from Iconix Brand Group Inc (ICON.O), while the other is from an investment group led by Windsong Brands and Hilco Consumer Capital, the sources told the paper.
NexCen, which is seeking to cut costs and boost liquidity as it faces a debt payment in October, said last month it had cut jobs and was exploring the possible sale of Waverly and apparel line Bill Blass.
The company, which buys and manages global brands generating revenue through licensing and franchising, had in May expressed substantial doubt about its ability to continue as a going concern and said it was exploring options to enhance liquidity.
The company's Bill Blass brand is expected to draw a bid from Iconix, which owns and licenses a popular collection of brands like Candie's, Joe Boxer and Rocawear, the sources told the paper.
Other potential bidders include Windsong Brands and Hilco, Bill Blass licensee Designer Licensing Holdings, and apparel company Phillips-Van Heusen (PVH.N), which lost an earlier bidding war for Bill Blass to NexCen, the paper said.
NexCen's portfolio also includes ice cream brand MaggieMoo's and retail footwear and accessories brands The Athlete's Foot and Shoebox New York. (Reporting by Pratish Narayanan in Bangalore, editing by Will Waterman)
