An affiliate of Men’s Wearhouse K&G Acquisition hadsubmitted the winning bid at an earlier bankruptcy auction tobuy Filene’s trade name 17 store leases

An affiliate of Men’s Wearhouse, K&G Acquisition, hadsubmitted the winning bid at an earlier bankruptcy auction tobuy Filene’s trade name, 17 store leases and its retailinventory for $67 million. But on Wednesday, the judge overseeing the case, MaryWalrath, ordered the auction re-opened after complaints fromrival bidders about the auction process. Crown had objected to the sale in court documents filed onTuesday, saying the original auction, held on June 5, was notrun in accordance with bid procedures, was submitted after abid deadline, and was a “travesty.” Filene’s Basement filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcyprotection on May 4 The case is In re: Filene’s Basement Inc, U.S BankruptcyCourt, District of Delaware, No. 09-11525.(Reporting by Emily Chasan, Phil Wahba and Chelsea Emery,editing by Dave Zimmerman and Ted Kerr) Stocks Bonds Bankruptcy. * GM weighs 856 appeals, reverses 45 dealer closings Stocks  |  Bonds  |  Private Capital  |  France  |  Japan  |  Bankruptcy * Chrysler sells, distributes all of outgoing inventory * Lawmakers question Chrysler on dealer pressure * Texas AG objects to GM ’strong arm tactics’ (Adds Texas attorney general objection) By Mari Saito and John Crawley WASHINGTON, June 12 (Reuters) – Virtually all dealers askedto do business with the new General Motors Corp GMGMQ.PKafter bankruptcy have agreed to do so, while the automaker willwork through the weekend to weigh appeals from those that arebeing cut loose, the company’s chief executive said on Friday.

Some 96 percent of 3,500 dealerships GM wants to retainhave agreed verbally or in writing to work with the automakerand 90 percent of those whose franchises are ending have signedor verbally agreed to wind-down terms, GM CEO Fritz Hendersontold a House of Representatives subcommittee. The dealerships with which GM wants to maintain arelationship had until Friday to accept terms that theautomaker said were aimed at streamlining its distribution andsales network and increasing market share. “Our dealership consolidation is not just about savingmoney, but about creating opportunity and revenue growth,”Henderson said, adding it received 856 appeals from dealershipsfacing termination and reversed closure decisions for 45 GM will consider appeals through the weekend, he said. Chrysler Group LLC Deputy Chief Executive Jim Press toldthe panel Chrysler had sold or redistributed all of the vehicleinventory from the 789 dealers it terminated in bankruptcy.Chrysler had offered no appeals. Some dealers have said Chrysler applied severe pressureearlier in 2009 to buy vehicles even though sales were weak andthe automaker’s prospects were fast deteriorating Chryslerfiled for bankruptcy on April 30. Lawmakers asked Press about a phone call in which he tolddealers that Chrysler would have a “long memory” if they didnot help the manufacturer “I would never threaten a dealer,” Press said Chrysler plans a network of about 2,300 U.S dealershipsunder its newly constituted company.

Italy’s Fiat SpA (FIA.MI)completed a takeover of Chrysler earlier this week. House and Senate members have introduced legislation toforce changes in how GM and Chrysler handle the dealershipcuts, which dealers estimate will cost 100,000 jobs. Theautomakers believe many of the dealerships will survive inother forms, such as by selling used cars. Lawmakers have asked the Obama administration’s autos taskforce to intervene in the disputes The U.S. government holdsan 8 percent stake in Chrysler Group and will hold a majoritycontrol of GM when that sale is completed. Representative Bart Stupak, chairman of the Energy andCommerce subcommittee on oversight and investigations and aMichigan Democrat, said GM and Chrysler’s viability should notcome at the expense of reputable and productive dealers. “I am concerned that the accelerated timeframe fordealership closures and the way in which dealers have beentreated may actually damage the brands more than help them,”Stupak said GM plans to eliminate 1,280 U.S.

dealerships from itsnetwork through October 2010, leaving the company with at least3,500. The wind down of the franchises would take place overthe next 17 months and would include some compensation. “Even with these cutbacks, GM will still have the largestdealer network in the country,” Henderson said. By comparison, Ford Motor Co (F.N) operates 3,300 U.S.dealerships, and global sales leader Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T)of Japan has 1,200 in the United States.

Dealers and dozens of lawmakers have criticized Chryslerand GM for what they consider overly aggressive restructuring. Auto executives have said the closing dealerships may havehad several issues such as low sales volume, poor customerservice, locations too close together or in areas no longerseen as desirable to the automakers. “In 24 hours, I was told that everything my family and Ihad worked for 84 years would be taken away,” FrankBlankenbeckler of Carlisle Chevrolet Co in Waxahachie, Texas,said choking back tears. Blankenbeckler received closurenotices from both GM and Chrysler over two days in May. The Texas attorney general on Friday objected to GM’s saleplan, saying the new franchise agreements substantially changedthe dealerships’ relationships with GM, stripped their right ofprotest, could require them to take inventory and denied themthe right to market other brands in violation of state law.