Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Alfred Angelo auction brings $245,000
Good news for dress retailers, not so much for creditors
DEERFIELD BEACH — The Alfred Angelo Bridal auction earlier this month raised about $245,000 for the company’s creditors.
The auction didn’t make a dent in Alfred Angelo’s massive debt, after the company collapsed and filed for bankruptcy in July. But some bidders, namely dress retailers and other small business operators, got some real bargains.
Alfred Angelo Bridal company and its stores — including those in those in Boynton Beach, Sunrise and Coral Gables — closed in July and the company filed for Chapter 7 liquidation. The court case is ongoing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in West Palm Beach.
No one big bidder for Alfred Angelo’s storied wedding dresses emerged from the auction, held on Sept 2, as auctioneer Stan Crooks had hoped.
Instead, top auction sales were: $5,300 for a 2008 Ford E250 Cargo Van with 53,000 miles on it; 30 “original design” wedding dresses that went for $3,600, or $120 apiece; and 363 designer wedding veils that were sold for $5,082 — a steal at $14 apiece.
Dresses were sold in bulk so there was no opportunity for individual brides-to-be to bid for Alfred Angelo dresses, which included some from its Disney character princess line as well as its new spring line — never seen. A few who appeared at the auction soon walked away when they learned it cost $1,000 to participate.
There were actually $269,000 in auction proceeds minus a 10 percent commission to the auctioneer, totaling $24,458. The auctioneer also submitted for reimbursement $18,000 in expenses that included labor and advertising.
Crooks said before beginning the auction that he expected to raise $250,000 to $500,000.
“I think it was a successful auction, based on the short time they had to market, and other constraints. The trustee was very happy with it,” Crooks said.
Trustee Margaret Smith didn’t respond to requests for comment.
Auction America did get one bulk bid for the dresses but didn’t accept it because it was too low. “The auction brought in a lot more,” Crooks said.
Mostly liquidators and small businesses were bidding in person at the auction, held at what was Alfred Angelo’s warehouse in Deerfield Beach.
Scott and Pam Price of Loxahatchee, regulars at Auction America auctions, won the Alfred Angelo van for $5,300. Scott Price said he planned to sell the van on the wholesale market for about $8,000.
Alfred Angelo Bridal closed its stores worldwide in mid-July, filing for Chapter 7 liquidation in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in West Palm Beach.
Early on, some brides were connected with their dresses with the help of Patricia Redmond, the Miami bankruptcy lawyer retained by Alfred Angelo’s owner. But trustee Smith later said she can no longer deliver any dresses to customers who have pending orders.
Alfred Angelo Bridal’s largest creditors are Czech Asset Management of Connecticut, which made $54 million in loans to Alfred Angelo in recent years. The secondlargest creditor for about $5 million in claims is credit-card processor Card Connect in Pennsylvania.