UPDATE A Westport-based investment company said today it has reached an agreement to acquire Waterworks Inc., the Danbury luxury bathroom retailer which filed for Chapter 11 reorganization in May. 
Waterworks, a retail bath accessories shop that had been at 181 Main St. for 10 years and in Westport since 1981, closed its Westport store on April 24. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com
Design Investors LLC is leading a group of investors in the acquisition, which is waiting for approval from a bankruptcy judge, Design Investors said in a news release.
Waterworks voluntarily filed for Chapter 11 in May, closed 20 of its stores nationwide and laid off more than 70 workers – including some in Connecticut, including Westport. (See WestportNow May 1, 2009)
The company has been in business more than 30 years and at one time, it had 38 stores in many major U.S. cities, including Los Angeles, Miami and New York.
The restructuring entailed closing Waterworks showrooms in secondary locations and creating a new channel of distribution and furthering a planned expansion of sales to third-party partners.
Design Investors will finance and purchase Waterworks’ debt , and has provided $15 million in aggregate financing and equity to fund operating expenses and meet supplier, customer, and employee commitments, the news release said.
The move is led by Design Investors’ Founder and Partner Peter Sallick, and Partner Meg Touborg. Sallick also served for 13 years as Waterworks CEO, while Touborg formerly served as Waterworks Chief Brand Officer-both through 2006.
Sallick’s parents, Barbara and Robert, founded Waterworks in 1978. The family sold Waterworks in 2005.
Once the sale is final, Sallick will take on management responsibilities at Waterworks, and Touborg assumes her role as board member and advisor.
“Waterworks is among the most unique and special brands; it has a very bright future ahead of it,” said Peter Sallick.
“The strength of the Waterworks brand-its reputation and relationships, its everlasting commitment to top-quality product design, and the talent of the many people who helped see it through this recent transition period-is enhanced only by the potency of the organization as a streamlined new entity.”
