“The 123-year-old department store chain anchors the new company — a joint venture with Sparc Group, which also owns Lucky Brand, Eddie Bauer, Nautica and Aeropostale. The merger will form a new company called Catalyst Brands, representing a gamble that combining the beleaguered brands will create a new powerhouse of mall staples … that also happen to have America’s largest mall operators as major financial backers.”