IT’S CHAPTER 11 FOR QUIKSILVER

Quiksilver, Inc. has filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection for its U.S. subsidiaries.

The Huntington Beach, Calif.-based company has also requested that the Bankruptcy Court approve $175 million in new debtor-in-possession financing with affiliates of Oaktree Capital Management, L.P. , a leading global investment managing company, and Bank of America, N.A.

Oaktree will provide funds and work to help Quiksilver reorganize and emerge from chapter 11.

“After careful consideration, we have taken this difficult but necessary step to secure a bright future for Quiksilver,” said Quiksilver CEO Pierre Agnes in a statement. “With the protections afforded by the Bankruptcy Code and the financing provided by Oaktree, we will not only be able to satisfy our ongoing obligations to customers, vendors and employees, but we will also have the flexibility needed to complete the turnaround of our U.S. operations and re-establish Quiksilver as the leader in the action sports industry. Our fresh capital structure, with a very low level of debt for our industry, will enable us to invest in and reinvigorate our brands and products. We are confident we will emerge a stronger business, better positioned to grow and prosper into the future.”

Quiksilver said that its European and Asia-Pacific businesses are strong and are not a part of the filing.

It also said that it would continue to close more stores in the U.S.

Quiksilver, which also owns the Roxy and DC brands, is distributed to more than 100 countries.