Editor’s Note: Information about a proposed buy out of True Value by Do It Best in Thursday’s CNA may not have been clear. The issue involves only suppliers for hardware stores. Do It Best and True Value have Creston connections. The following information states how corporate True Value will continue operation and Do It Best’s proposal.
Do it Best, a supplier for hardware and lumber stores, said Monday it is interested to acquire all assets from True Value, another supplier of hardware stores that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy under private equity ownership.
In Creston, Do It Best is a supplier for Akin. Other Akin locations are in Corning, Clarinda and Atlantic. True Value has a Creston location.
The proposed acquisition, supported unanimously by the Do it Best board of directors, would create a worldwide store network exceeding 8,000 locations in the U.S. and more than 50 countries around the world.
True Value and certain of its affiliates initiated voluntary Chapter 11 proceedings in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. True Value will continue its operations serving 4,500 independently owned retailers.
Do It Best’s proposed acquisition would allow True Value stores to maintain their independence while gaining access to Do it Best’s programs. True Value stores are independently owned and are not a part of the bankruptcy proceedings, with the exception of one company-owned store in Palatine, Illinois.
If Do it Best is the winning bidder, the transaction is expected to close by the end of the year, pending regulatory and court approval. True Value will continue to operate under Chapter 11 protection with Do it Best providing a stalking horse bid, a phrase used in economics when the bankrupt company will choose an entity from a pool of bidders who will make the first bid on the remaining assets.
Under the agreement, Do it Best will purchase many of the True Value assets and business operations. To the extent True Value requires additional financing during the bankruptcy process, Do it Best has committed to provide incremental capital to True Value to help ensure independent True Value retailers’ ability to continue serving customers throughout the process.