Valuations & Acquisitions: Dealing With an October Surprise

Amid this bleak backdrop, Lee Helman, a partner with New York-based investment firm Financo, contends, with some caveats, that deals are still getting done; they just take more creativity to find completion.

They entail multichannel marketers shedding assets they consider to be noncore (read expendable), with the cash being put back into the business. Such was the case in September when multichannel teen apparel marketer dELiA*s sold extreme sports marketer CCS to Foot Locker for $102 million in cash. Although a stable business, dELiA*s considered CCS noncore and will use the proceeds to fund its retail strategy.