Jahm Najafi, whose private equity firm Najafi Companies had made a bid for Borders earlier this month, has withdrawn his offer, reports the Wall Street Journal. With Najafi out of the picture, time has almost run out for the bookseller; it has until Sunday to find a new bidder, and failing that it will go up for auction next Tuesday, where a group of liquidators who are willing to pay more than Najafi are expected to be the opening bidders.
The problem with Najafi’s offer was that it was too low to appease landlords and creditors, who were afraid that he would liquidate the company anyway. According to the WSJ, “Mr. Najafi was willing to drop his liquidation option if publishers agreed to grant him normal trade terms, according to people familiar with the matter. Some major publishers agreed, but by late Wednesday afternoon a couple hadn’t, the people said. At that point, Mr. Najafi signaled he wouldn’t alter his terms.”
It’s still possible Najafi will come back to the bargaining table, but only if the creditors who rejected his offer change their minds and “choose to work with us and our existing offer.” Otherwise, it’s likely that Borders will close up shop for good.
Read the full article at The Wall Street Journal.
(Photo: rubenerd)
Way too bad, if nothing else that we all need competition for the Amazon juggernaut. Perhaps I can score a liquidated Kobo Touch!
We need to get back to shopping at the small independent bookstores so I am not crying for the kmart of books failing like that.
What small independent bookstores? There sure aren’t any within 20 miles of me, and whatever’s left hasn’t served me very well in decades. What we need is bookstores, large or small, that can serve us, and can modernize to keep up with the times. If they can’t keep up with the 21st century… it must be their time to go.