Dollar Tree, Ollie’s Acquire 99 Cents Only Stores

The fate of two batches of stores operated by the now-defunct 99 Cents Only Stores has been disclosed in recent days. First, closeout retailer Ollie’s Bargain Outlet Holdings Inc. (Harrisburg, Pa.) said the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware has approved the company’s stalking horse bid to acquire 11 former 99 Cents Only Stores locations. Ollie’s plans to convert the locales to its brand in coming months.

Next, Dollar Tree Inc. (Chesapeake, Va.) announced it has acquired designation rights for 170 leases of 99 Cents Only Stores across Arizona, California, Nevada and Texas. The deal was completed via two transactions approved by the Delaware bankruptcy court earlier this month.

As part of the deals, Dollar Tree also acquired the North American intellectual property of 99 Cents Only Stores and select on-site furniture, fixtures and equipment.

“As we continue to execute on our accelerated growth strategy for the Dollar Tree brand, this was an attractive opportunity to secure leases in priority markets where we see strong profitable growth potential,” says Dollar Tree COO Michael Creedon Jr. “The portfolio complements our existing footprint and will provide us access to high quality real estate assets in premium retail centers, enabling us to rapidly grow the Dollar Tree brand across the western United States, reaching even more customers and communities.”

In April, California-based 99 Cents Only Stores filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and subsequently initiated a process to dispose of its assets, including its inventory, owned real estate and store leases. The retailer operated a total of 371 stores; the fate of the remaining 190 outlets not acquired by Ollie’s or Dollar Tree could not be immediately determined.