Crabtree & Evelyn files bankruptcy
NEW YORK - Soap and lotion seller Crabtree & Evelyn Ltd. said it filed for Chapter 11 protection yesterday, a victim of the recession and management missteps.
The pressure of repaying debt forced the company to file for bankruptcy, acting president Stephen Bestwick said in a court filing. He said management changes had resulted in several shifts in strategy, hurting its wholesale business.
The company plans to use the court’s protection to renegotiate leases with reluctant landlords in its effort to restructure and emerge from bankruptcy. The filing does not include operations outside the United States.
The Woodstock, Conn.-based company reported in a court filing that it had $46.2 million in debt and $31.7 million in assets as of March 31. The privately held company runs 126 retail stores that sell bath products and gift basket items, including a shop at Copley Place in Boston, among others.
The company’s first retail store opened in 1977. The store’s name is derived from a short form of Crabapple Tree and the last name of John Evelyn, a Brit who wrote about conservation.
It filed its case in the Southern District of New York.
