Son of founders buys Entertainment Publications out of bankruptcy for $17.5 million

Troy-based Entertainment Publications LLC announced today that the son of its founders has purchased the 50-year-old company for $17.5 million following a previously announced plan to do so in the wake of a Chapter 7 bankruptcy filing. The price, though, is higher than Lowell Potiker of HSP-EPI Acquisition LLC's initial bid to buy the coupon book company's customer list, records, information, files, data, advertising and promotional materials, its intellectual property and all other major assets. The initial bid was $11.3 million, according to a bankruptcy petition filed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware on March 12. It wasn't immediately disclosed how many employees have been rehired, but William Daddi of New York City-based Daddi Brand Communications said the company is in the process of "hiring a majority back." There was one other qualified bidder at the auction, Binghamton, N.Y.-based coupon book producer SaveAround, according to Daddi. Observers say Potiker will be dealt the task of rebuilding a company that has struggled with declining revenue, has been unable to adapt sufficiently to the digital age and has seen rapid turnover of ownership and executives over the past several years. read more at:http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20130425/NEWS/130429919/son-of-founders-buys-entertainment-publications-out-of-bankruptcy#