The company that makes Hickey Freeman suits has filed for bankruptcy — again.
Despite a clientele that includes President Obama and rival Mitt Romney, New York-based HMX Group filed for Chapter 11 yesterday, its second trip to bankruptcy court since 2009.
HMX gave no reason for its filing. Insiders said SKNL, the India-based firm that had scooped it out of insolvency three years earlier, refused to pump more cash into HMX not long after buying it.
HMX, which also owns Hart Schaffner Marx, has agreed to be acquired by Authentic Brands Group, a licensing firm that recently bought the Prince brand for $85 million, sources said.
A person close to the deal said Authentic Brands plans to partner with a company that will keep its Rochester, NY, factory open.
This week, however, HMX warned employees at the factory and Manhattan offices that most of them may lose their jobs.
The bankruptcy is an embarrassment to Sen. Chuck Schumer, who in August brokered a deal for emergency financing — intended to safeguard jobs “for years to come.”
Yesterday, Schumer blasted HMX, saying the company had not “lived up to its commitments.”