Bon-Ton spent $1.1B buying stores — then sold its name for $900K

Bon-Ton was founded in 1898 and grew through decades of acquisitions to become a regional department store chain operating 267 stores under multiple names including Carson's, Bergner's, Boston Store, Herberger's, and Younkers. The company's defining bet was the $1.1 billion purchase of Saks' Northern Department Store Group in 2005, which added 142 stores but loaded the company with debt it could never service.

The business model was increasingly unsustainable as shoppers moved online and to discount chains. Bon-Ton posted no net profit from 2011 through 2017. Same-store sales declined 6% in both Q2 and Q3 2017. On 15 December 2017, the company missed a $14 million interest payment, triggering a grace period that led to Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing on 4 February 2018.

The court approved liquidation of all 267 stores in April 2018. Inventory and assets were sold for $775.5 million. The Bon-Ton brand name, website domains, and customer database of 24.5 million records were sold to CSC Generation for just $900,000 in September 2018. The company that once operated 267 stores and employed tens of thousands sold its most valuable remaining asset — its name — for less than a million dollars.