Arcade Publishing, the respected literary publisher founded in 1988 by Richard and Jeannette Seaver, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The move comes approximately five months after the death of Richard Seaver.
In its filing, Arcade explained that since the death of Seaver, the company “has struggled in an effort to reorganize and seek investors. However, the loss of Mr. Seaver coupled with the ongoing financial issues in the publishing industry and the breakdown of the economy have all conspired to force the Debtor to seek relief in Chapter 11.”
Earlier this month, the company laid off Tessa Aye, an assistant editor, and Casey Ebro, an editor and publicity associate. In its filing, Arcade lists total assets of $4.5 million, including $1.2 million in inventory, and total liabilities of $6.3 million; this figure includes $2.4 million due to stockholders and $1.6 million in accrued royalties. The company said that, given the opportunity, it will be able to consummate a plan of reorganization.
The company could have problems regrouping, however, since, according to court papers, it has recently laid off senior v-p and general manager Cal Barksdale, providing him with severance of $35,000. The company is also involved with two lawsuits, one with author Steven Hodel over $111,453 in unpaid royalties and a second with the printer Edwards Brothers for $238,000. Both are one of Arcade’s largest unsecured creditors along with Little, Brown--Arcade’s distributor--which has a $242,876 returns reserve under the distribution agreement and $243,932 in loans, both of which are subject to setoffs. All of Arcade’s inventory is in the warehouse of LB parent company Hachette.
