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In a corporate drama worthy of Wall Street lore, Royal Interco LLC, the Arizona-based private label paper products supplier to grocery giants like Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, Kroger, and Aldi, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in Delaware. The move comes as the company reels from a perfect storm of $205 million in outstanding secured debt, supply chain disasters, and financial chaos.

In a first-day declaration filed late Tuesday, Chief Restructuring Officer Michael Ragano detailed how the company unraveled under the crushing weight of labor shortages, a devastating fire at one of its distribution centers, and a tightening credit leash from wary suppliers ahead of a looming debt maturity.

A Chain Reaction of Catastrophe

"The dominoes began to fall," Ragano wrote, pointing to the decline in supplier credit that halted the company's ability to purchase essential raw materials—most critically, pulp. Without it, fulfilling orders on time and in full became a near-impossible mission.

That ripple effect pushed Royal Interco to the brink, forcing its hand toward Chapter 11 reorganization.

Behind the Curtain: Debt, Deals, and a Stalking Horse

Royal Interco’s books paint a stark picture. The company reports between $100 million and $500 million in assets, dwarfed by its $205 million in secured debt tied to a 2020 credit agreement. The firm is primarily owned and controlled by GC Fund III RP, AIV, L.P., a private equity fund.

As part of its restructuring lifeline, Royal Interco has struck an asset purchase agreement with Sofidel America Corp., who’s entered the scene as the stalking horse bidder with a $126 million offer to acquire all of the company’s assets—subject to the court’s green light.

To keep the lights on during proceedings, Royal Interco also secured a $10 million debtor-in-possession (DIP) loan from its current lenders. Notably, the facility does not include a roll-up of prepetition term loans, indicating a calculated and cautious move to avoid further entangling its financial web.

Key Creditors and Legal Representation

With up to 50 creditors in line, the two largest unsecured claims come from Tradecycle Capital LLC ($3.2 million) and Sustana Fiber LLC ($2.8 million), according to court documents.

Amid the turbulence, Craig S. Dean has been appointed as Independent Manager, steering the company toward a targeted sale closure by mid-June.

Royal Interco is legally represented by Robert J. Dehney of Morris, Nichols, Arsht & Tunnell LLP, a veteran in high-stakes corporate restructurings.