Filing Alert: West Marine Chapter 11
West Marine, Inc., a Fort Lauderdale, FL-based provider of marine aftermarket products, filed for Chapter 11 protection on May 17, 2026, in the U.S. Bankrupt...
West Marine, Inc. and its debtor affiliates⁽¹⁾, a Fort Lauderdale, FL-based provider of marine aftermarket products, filed for Chapter 11 protection on May 17 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.
The company, which previously executed two out-of-court recapitalizations in 2023 that equitized approximately $660 million in funded debt, attributes its current distress to a convergence of macroeconomic and operational headwinds. A post-pandemic contraction in consumer discretionary spending and severe weather disruptions in core markets depressed sales, leaving the company burdened by elevated inventory and an overexpanded retail footprint carrying approximately $55 million in annual lease obligations. With liquidity deteriorating to approximately $21.5 million prepetition, the company initiated the court-supervised process to rationalize its store portfolio and execute a comprehensive balance sheet restructuring.
The dual-track filing aims to implement a Restructuring Support Agreement (RSA) backed by 100% of the company’s FILO lenders, 96.2% of its term loan lenders, and 93.9% of existing equity. The baseline recapitalization path contemplates the equitization of roughly $251.2 million in prepetition term loans in exchange for 100% of the reorganized equity, subject to MIP dilution, alongside the payment in full or conversion of prepetition ABL and FILO claims into the Exit ABL Facility and Exit Term Loan Facility, respectively, each with three-year maturity extensions — driving over $300 million in total funded debt deleveraging. General unsecured creditors (GUCs) are slated to share a $250,000 distribution pool, subject to class acceptance. Concurrently, the Debtors will advance a parallel sale process under court-approved Bidding Procedures to test the market, retaining the flexibility to toggle to a value-maximizing bid. The cases will be funded through the consensual use of cash collateral and ordinary-course operations.
The company reports $500 million to $1 billion in both assets and liabilities. The filing indicates that there will be funds available for distribution to unsecured creditors. The case number is 26-10794.
⁽¹⁾ For a complete list of debtor entities, see the Chapter 11 Debtors table.
Chapter 11 Debtors
Top Unsecured Claims
Key Parties
Counsel:
- Michael R. Nestor
Young Conaway Stargatt & Taylor, LLP
Email: MNestor@ycst.com
Restructuring Counsel:
- Kirkland & Ellis LLP
- Kirkland & Ellis International LLP
Investment Banker:
- Triple P Securities, LLC
Financial Advisor:
- FTI Consulting, Inc.
Real Estate Advisor and Liquidator:
- Hilco Merchant Resources, LLC
- Hilco Real Estate, LLC
Signatories:
- Paulee Day – Chief Executive Officer
Claims Agent:
- Kurtzman Carson Consultants, LLC dba Verita Global
Equity Security Holders:
- Rising Tide Parent – 100% Equity Interest