TORONTO — Sears Canada‘s former executive chairman says his bid to buy the embattled retailer was well-reasoned but the creditor protection process was biased toward liquidation.
Brandon Stranzl says the creditor process which Sears entered in June was structured as a sale rather than a recovery from the beginning.
READ MORE: No deals at Sears? Here’s why prices can be higher during liquidation sales
He adds that after he stepped away from his role to focus on submitting a bid there was no leadership in the room to guide the process towards a solution that would allow Sears to keep its doors open.
LISTEN: Brandon Stranzl joins Tasha Kheiriddin on AM640
Stranzl had been in weeks-long discussions with the embattled retailer to buy it and continue to operate it, but no deal was reached.
WATCH: Sears Canada executives, managers get big bonuses as closeout sales begin
Sears Canada began liquidation sales at its roughly 130 remaining stores across the country on Oct. 19.
READ MORE: Sears revises bonuses as it tries to get employees to stay to the very end
Stranzl says he is saddened for the thousands of employees who have or will lose their jobs.
“There is nothing good to say to anybody who lost their job in this way,” he said. “I really feel your pain.”
— With a file from Global News reporter Maham Abedi