Fortunoff liquidation could begin this week

NEW YORK, Feb 24 (Reuters) - U.S. luxury retailer Fortunoff Holdings LLC could begin liquidating as early as Wednesday, after a group of six liquidators won a bankruptcy auction for the company on Monday, according to one of the liquidators.

Liquidators Great American Group, Hudson Capital, SB Capital, Tiger Capital, and jewelry liquidators Bobby Wilkerson Inc and The Gordon Co are planning to begin going out of business sales on Wednesday, pending court approval, said Thomas Pabst, chief operating officer of Great American Group.

The joint venture of liquidators beat out a bid from a rival liquidator group at an auction on Monday. A hearing on the liquidation is set for later on Tuesday at U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan.

Fortunoff, which sells jewelry, dinnerware and furniture in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Connecticut, filed for bankruptcy protection earlier this month. Fortunoff is owned by NRDC Equity Partners, a private equity firm that bought the retailer out of an earlier bankruptcy last year. (Reporting by Emily Chasan; Editing by Phil Berlowitz)