Sailormen is in a sale-driven chapter 11, operating under final cash-collateral authority while its auction process moves from bidder selection toward sale approval and a June 30 outside date to consummate sales. The Miami-based Popeyes franchisee filed on January 15, 2026 after margin pressure, labor constraints, underperforming stores, a failed 16-store Georgia sale, and a BMO-led receivership action left management facing an immediate control and liquidity crisis, according to the Baker first-day declarationDkt. 9. The petition identified David Baker as CRO, Interfoods of America as 100% equity owner, and a March 26, 2026 claims bar date in the voluntary petitionDkt. 1.
The case quickly centered on use of cash collateral rather than new-money DIP financing. BMO Bank, N.A., as administrative agent, asserted first-priority liens on substantially all assets and prepetition secured obligations that the final order fixed at at least $129.98 million; the court authorized continued cash-collateral use, granted replacement liens and a superpriority claim, imposed weekly reporting and 110% aggregate disbursement variance testing, and tied liquidity access to sale milestones in the final cash-collateral orderDkt. 327. Landlords contested the economics of continued store use, including postpetition rent and cure protections, in a cash-collateral objectionDkt. 190, while a separate adversary proceeding put potentially material Employee Retention Tax Credit proceeds at issue by challenging whether part of a $12.8 million ERTC check belonged to the estate or to former Interfoods sellers under the stock purchase agreement, as set out in the .
The current posture is an in-flight auction and sale process. On June 15, the debtor said the auction for substantially all assets had begun but had not concluded, extended the successful-bidder and adequate-assurance deadlines to 11:59 p.m. ET on June 16, and reserved the right to further adjust the process under the bidding procedures and final cash-collateral order in the auction deadline noticeDkt. 616. The debtor separately identified SBH Foods PLK LLC as successful bidder for five Savannah-region stores at a $650,000 purchase price, while noting the auction remained ongoing for other assets, in the first successful-bidder noticeDkt. 617. The next visible milestone is the June 18, 2026 sale-related hearing at 9:30 a.m. ET, with multiple creditors seeking remote appearances and at least one landlord disputing cure for a Port St. Lucie lease in the LR911 cure objectionDkt. 613.
