MONTVALE, N.J., July 20 (UPI) — A&P, a supermarket chain that once ran more than 16,000 stores across the United States, filed for bankruptcy Monday, the company said.
The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company now runs 296 stores under the names A&P, Best Cellars, Food Basics, The Food Emporium, Pathmark, Superfresh and Waldbaums. With the bankruptcy, the company is selling some 120 locations for about $600 million. It will also close 25 stores with slumping sales and is looking to eventually sell all remaining stores.
Monday marks the New Jersey-based company’s second Chapter 11 filing in five years. A&P has $1.6 billion in assets, well short of the $2.3 billion it owes.
“After careful consideration of all alternatives, we have concluded that a sale process implemented through chapter 11 is the best way for A&P to preserve as many jobs as possible, and maximize value for all stakeholders,” A&P chief executive Paul Hertz said in a statement.
A&P began in 1859 as a small chain of tea and coffee stores in New York City. It also conducted nationwide mail-order sales.
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