WYNIT Distribution, LLC and several related entities (collectively, the “Company”) were a significant distributor of consumer electronics and accessories, photography and video equipment, specialty printing products and emerging technology projects.
The Company was originally established in 1987. The Company was based in Greenville, South Carolina and had a few warehousing and distribution centers in the US and one in Mississauga, Ontario. The Mississauga premises processed significant levels of inventory for the Company.
As a result of a slower than expected holiday season and the Company’s inability to secure anticipated supplemental financing, each entity commenced proceedings by filing voluntary petitions for relief under Chapter 11 of the US Bankruptcy Code (“Chapter 11 Proceedings”). Following the Company’s insolvency filings in the US, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice (the “Court”) granted orders under Part IV of the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act recognizing the Chapter 11 Proceedings as “foreign main proceedings” and appointing KSV as the Information Officer.
As Information Officer, our role was primarily to: (i) assist the Company and its advisors in conducting the sale process for the Company’s business and assets (“Sale Process”); (ii) oversee all issues affecting Canadian stakeholders; and (iii) report to the Court on all material aspects of the Chapter 11 Proceedings, including in numerous motions to recognize in Canada the material transactions completed and approved by the US Court in the context of the Chapter 11 Proceedings.
The Sale Process resulted in a liquidation transaction for the majority of the Company’s accounts receivable and inventory and a going concern sale for the Company’s software business. Thereafter, the Chapter 11 Proceedings were converted to proceedings under Chapter 7 of the US Bankruptcy Code. Since that time, our role as Information Officer included coordinating cross-border matters with the Chapter 7 Trustee.