Dive Brief:
- Further Point Enterprises, the holding company that acquired $2.2 million worth of Foxtrot Market’s non-real-estate assets last month, has entered into lease agreements for six of the retailer’s former c-stores, according to a May 31 court filing with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.
- All six locations are in Chicago and are owned by different landlords, the court document shows. It’s still unclear what Further Point intends to do with these six convenience stores.
- This comes as the Chapter 7 bankruptcy trustee for Outfox Hospitality — parent company for Foxtrot and grocery chain Dom’s Kitchen & Market — seeks court approval to terminate all of the retailer’s unexpired leases.
Dive Insight:
Further Point acquired Foxtrot’s assets last month in what one auction attendee called a “completely ramrodded” process. Those materials included the retailer’s inventory, intellectual property, accounts, chattel paper, documents, furniture, fixtures and equipment, general intangibles and goods.
According to the court document, that deal was only for assets found inside 15 Foxtrot locations as opposed to the retailer’s entire footprint. Ten of those c-stores are located in Chicago, while three are in Dallas and two are in Austin. Real estate wasn’t included in the auction.
The six locations that Further Point has now leased were part of the group of 15 stores whose assets it acquired, according to the court filing. These locations are scattered across several neighborhoods in Chicago, such as Old Town, Wicker Park, Gold Coast and Fulton Market.
By becoming the official tenant for these six convenience stores, Further Point seems intent on either revitalizing the Foxtrot brand or using the properties for another undisclosed purpose.
C-Store Dive visited four of the six locations Monday. Three had perishable goods stocked on shelves in the stores, while the fourth’s windows were blocked from viewing inside. The exterior of multiple locations was also in poor condition, with the Old Town store’s patio littered with broken glass and food wrappers, while the Wicker Park store’s building was spray painted with graffiti.
David Magruder, managing partner for Further Point, did not respond by press time when reached to comment on the deal.
Property management company Terra Associates, which manages the Foxtrot in Chicago’s Old Town neighborhood — one of the retailer’s largest and most popular stores that featured both indoor and outdoor dining areas — declined to comment.
Outfox’s trustee is seeking court approval to reject all unexpired leases for both Foxtrot and Dom’s locations to “eliminate unnecessary burdens,” according to the court filing. The trustee has determined that these leases “have no economic value, and are not in any way helpful” to Outfox’s future.
However, the six leases with Further Point will remain untouched. The court filing notes that the trustee “is not seeking to reject or modify real property leases that have been assigned to [Further Point] or in any way affect new real property leases that have been entered into or will be entered into between [Further Point] and any landlord.”
