Earlier this spring, just on the cusp of the COVID-19 pandemic, Alex Brands quietly shut its doors.
The New Jersey-based company, which was gearing up to celebrate the 75th anniversary of its Slinky brand this year, reportedly let its third-party PR team go immediately following Toy Fair New York. By mid-March, most staffers had been sent home, and by early April, its website went offline and lawsuits had been filed on behalf of manufacturing and logistics partners.
Now the company’s assets are set to hit the auction block.
According to a public notice, the assets and intellectual property (IP) of Alex Toys LLC, a Delaware limited liability company, and Poof-Slinky LLC, a Michigan limited liability company, will be sold at a public auction taking place May 12 at the offices of Ellenoff Grossman & Schole LLP in New York City. Only qualified bidders will be permitted to attend the auction, which will be held over the phone.
Terms of sale and other details are available by contacting Glenn J. Krevlin, Trustee of Glenn J. Krevlin Revocable Trust dated July 25, 2007, or Howard J. Berman, Esq. of Ellenoff Grossman & Schole LLP, attorneys for the secured party.
In recent years, Alex Brands had been on a buying spree, picking up legacy brands such as Ideal, Shrinky Dinks, and Slinky, in addition to releasing toys under the Alex Toys, Poof, Backyard Safari, and Alex Spa brands, among others. Last fall, Alex Brands announced its intent to purchase U.S. Foam Corp. At Toy Fair New York, the company announced plans to extend its Scientific Explorer collection with new products created in collaboration with kid science genius Brielle Milla.
