Eddie Bauer CEO would get $2.2 million in sale

The chief executive of apparel retailer Eddie Bauer Holdings Inc. would collect more than $2.2 million from stock payments and a bonus if the company is purchased by private equity firms, the company’s proxy statement said.

President and CEO Fabian Mansson also would receive more than $8.6 million in severance and other benefits if he resigns or is fired without cause within two years of the purchase.

A holding company owned by affiliates of Sun Capital Partners Inc. of Boca Raton, Fla., and San Francisco-based Golden Gate Capital has agreed to pay $286 million in cash, or $9.25 a share, and assume $328 million in debt to take over Eddie Bauer.

The sale is subject to shareholder approval, with a vote scheduled Jan. 25.

Eddie Bauer spokeswoman Wendi Kopsick could not say whether Mansson would remain at the company if the sale was approved. “We can’t speculate on any future decisions regarding management,” she said Thursday.

The clothing retailer had been part of Spiegel Inc. but was spun off in 2005 as part of Spiegel’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization.

In announcing the deal last month, Eddie Bauer said the acquisition was the result of a review of strategic alternatives. In an earlier regulatory filing, the company said it had lost about $275 million in the nine months ended Sept. 30.

Eddie Bauer shares rose 2 cents to $9.06.