Rockport, which last week filed for Chap. 11 bankruptcy protection for the second time in five years, is negotiating with a “stalking horse” bidder with the hopes of entering an asset purchase agreement in the near-term. If a deal emerges, it would be Rockport’s fifth owner over the last decade that began with Reebok and Adidas and more recently, New Balance and Berkshire Hathaway followed by an affiliate of Charlesbank.

Rockport, founded in 1971 by father and son Saul and Bruce Katz, has been coping with deteriorating financial conditions for months and unable to secure an outright buyer since last September. Investment bank Stifel contacted 13 potential buyers for the business over a six-month period ending in April but failed to lock up a deal with any of them. A subsequent effort resulted in three parties submitting formal written proposals for the company that introduced the rubber soled DresSports collection 40 years ago.

Last year, Rockport generated $203 million in total sales, up from $162 million in 2020 but down from $275 million in 2019, that included a 23 percent increase in e-commerce revenues to $34 million and 44 percent gain in e-tail sales from direct-to-consumer platforms to $42 million. Two of Rockport’s three loan facilities, totaling $61.1 million, will mature on Aug. 2. A third, with a principal balance of $35.6 million, will mature in Feb. 2024. The company also owes its 20 largest unsecured creditors more than $63.1 million.