Tech company to revive Elder-Beerman, Bon-Ton websites

A tech company may bring back Elder-Beerman and other brands owned by Bon-Ton Inc. with online shopping sites and physical stores.

If a bankruptcy court approves, Indiana-based technology company CSC Generation Holdings has agreed to pay $900,000 for Bon-Ton’s trademarks, websites, customer lists and other data, according to a court filing in the District of Delaware Bankruptcy Court.

CSC Generation Holdings, which buys and revamps e-commerce sites, outbid Christopher & Banks in an auction about six weeks ago, according to court documents.

RELATED: Elder-Beerman hints at comeback following bankruptcy

The tech company's goal is to focus on ecommerce while making plans to reinvent physical stores that will better keep up with Amazon and other online retailers. The tech startup is reportedly in advanced conversations to reopen physical locations in at least Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

About 24.5 million unique customer records with full name and mailing addresses are expected to be turned over to CSC Generation if the bankruptcy court approves the agreement. It has about 5.6 million email addresses, according to the filing.

L’Oreal also won the Bon-Ton’s beauty data for a temporary period, according to the court records.

The Dayton Daily News previously reported that Elder Beerman’s website said the store was coming back.

“Stay tuned for updates over the coming weeks! We appreciate your loyalty & look forward to being able to serve you again soon,” the website read.

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Bon-Ton filed for bankruptcy in February, followed by liquidation sales of all of its brands including Bon-Ton, Bergner’s, Boston Store, Carson’s, Elder-Beerman, Herberger’s and Younkers. The sales that began in April came to an end last week, as all stores shut their doors, for what the public thought was the last time.

Dayton’s long-time retailer Elder-Beerman was a staple in the community, employing hundreds within stores and at the former distribution center in Fairborn.

“I feel almost like crying, but I wanted to come back for the final time,” said Darlene Johnson of Wilmington as she finished up shopping at the Dayton Mall location on the store’s final day. Both of her parents worked at Elder-Beerman, and she said it held a lot of memories.

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