JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Southeastern Grocers, LLC ("SEG" or "the Company") announced that the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware (the "Court") has confirmed the Company's Amended Prepackaged Chapter 11 Plan (the "Plan"). The Company expects to complete its financial restructuring process and emerge from Chapter 11 in the coming weeks, after the conditions of the Plan are satisfied.
As previously announced, the Plan will decrease overall debt levels by approximately $600 million(including $522 million of debt exchanged for equity in the reorganized Company) and strengthen the Company's balance sheet, allowing SEG to invest in the business to further support its financial health and long-term success.
Anthony Hucker, President and Chief Executive Officer of SEG, said, "We are delighted with the Court's swift approval which marks a major milestone in the transformation and correction of our business. This confirmation paves the way for us to emerge as a strong, viable business that is well-positioned to succeed in the competitive retail market.
"I want to thank our dedicated associates who have remained focused on ensuring our customers and communities can count on us. We're rooted in our purpose and now firmly on our path to success. We're eager to show our customers how far we've come – and how far we're going – as we emerge from this process."
SEG will continue to operate more than 575 stores under the BI-LO, Fresco y Más, Harveys Supermarket and Winn-Dixie banners, providing great service, quality and value throughout the seven states that SEG serves.
Additional information about the Company's restructuring efforts is available at www.segrocers.com/restructuring. Court documents and additional information can be found at a website administered by the Company's claims agent, Prime Clerk, at http://cases.primeclerk.com/SEG.
Advisors
Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP is serving as legal counsel, Evercore is serving as investment banker, and FTI Consulting Inc. is serving as restructuring advisor to SEG.
About Southeastern Grocers
Southeastern Grocers, LLC, (SEG) parent company and home of BI-LO, Fresco y Más, Harveys Supermarket and Winn-Dixie grocery stores, is one of the largest conventional supermarket companies in the U.S. SEG grocery stores, liquor stores and in-store pharmacies serve communities throughout the seven southeastern states of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina and South Carolina. BI-LO, Fresco y Más, Harveys Supermarket and Winn-Dixie are well-known and well-respected regional brands with deep heritages, strong neighborhood ties, proud histories of giving back, talented and caring associates and strong commitments to providing the best possible quality and value to customers. For more information, visit www.bi-lo.com, www.frescoymas.com, www.harveyssupermarkets.com and www.winndixie.com.
Cautionary Statements Regarding Forward-Looking Information
Certain statements in this press release constitute forward-looking statements. Such statements are not historical fact and are forward-looking statements. Certain of these forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "believes," "anticipates," "expects," "intends," "plans," "projects," "estimates," "assumes," "may," "should," "could," "would," "shall," "will," "seeks," "targets," "future," or other similar expressions. Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important factors, and our actual results, performance or achievements could differ materially from results, performance or achievements expressed in these forward-looking statements. Such statements include, but are not limited to, statements relating to the court-supervised restructuring process, descriptions of management's strategy, plans, objectives, expectations, or intentions, including the ability to support the company's operations during the restructuring process and descriptions of assumptions underlying any of the above matters and other statements that are not historical fact.
The above factors, risks and uncertainties are difficult to predict, contain uncertainties that may materially affect actual results and may be beyond the Company's control. New factors, risks and uncertainties emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for management to predict all such factors, risks and uncertainties. Although the Company believes that the assumptions underlying the forward-looking statements contained herein are reasonable, any of the assumptions could be inaccurate, and therefore any of these statements may prove to be inaccurate. In light of the significant uncertainties inherent in the forward-looking statements included herein, the inclusion of such information should not be regarded as a representation by the Company or any other person that the results or conditions described in such statements or the Company's objectives and plans will be achieved. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date such statements were made or any earlier date indicated, and the Company does not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, changes in underlying assumptions or otherwise. If the Company were in any particular instance to update or correct a forward-looking statement, investors and others should not conclude that the Company would make additional updates or corrections thereafter.
Source: Southeastern Grocers
