Wet Seal Offers to Acquire Rampage Stores

Wet Seal Inc. said it has offered to acquire 21 stores from Rampage Retailing Inc., a bankrupt apparel chain, for an undisclosed price. Rampage executives weren’t available to comment on the proposal, but Irvine-based Wet Seal said the purchase must first be approved by Rampage, Wet Seal’s board and the U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge overseeing the chain’s operations. Wet Seal said that the stores have gross revenue of $50 million and are located in malls around the country. Rampage, a privately held company based in Los Angeles with 50 stores, filed for bankruptcy protection in June along with Rampage Clothing Co., a sister company. The filings listed nearly $94 million in debt accumulated during an ambitious expansion drive.