Scott Ruscyzk, president of FB Acquisition II says that pending a ratification of the bid from the court, it is "equally important, the agreement is expected to preserve jobs for the vast majority of Filene's 1,600-plus employees, while maintaining relationships with many of the vendors that historically sold to the chain and preventing vacancies in at least 17 of the retail properties where the chain was an anchor or subanchor tenant." FB Acquisition II is an affiliate of the Buxbaum Group, which purchased Filene's out of bankruptcy in 1999 from Retail Ventures, Inc.

Other competitors in the auction were Syms, Vornado Realty Trust and Crown Acquisitions. Crown had made a pre-auction play for 17 of Filene's stores in early May for roughly one-third the price Men's Warehouse bid. The $22-million offer did not include the Burlington and Auburn office and distribution center.

"With the inventories ultimately expected to be added into the equation, we anticipated that the auction bids would be north of $40 million. Accordingly, the winning bid was a great result," says Filene's Chief Restructuring Office Alan Cohen.