Dov Charney Reveals He\'s fallen on hard times, Trying To Buy His Way Back


If you thought the termination of Dov Charney was the last you'd hear of him and the end of the American Apparel saga think again. After being ousted out of the company he founded the former CEO revealed he's down to his last $100,000 and is sleeping on a friend's couch in the Lower East Side.

Speaking with Trish Regan at Bloomberg TV the ousted Charney blamed hedge fund Standard General in playing a part to oust him. Charney says he took loan from them in July so he could boost his ownership of the company but instead the company betrayed him by controlling his shares as collateral and putting several members on AAl's board. "I gave them my entire life's work, and they agreed to put me back in," Charney told Regan. "Instead, they used this investigation to fire me."

American Apparel had paid Charney an annual salary of $800,000 as CEO. Today, the company he founded is valued at between $226-$243 million. Charney was replaced by Paula Schneider, who is reportedly a close friend of his.

However not all is lost for the fallen founder who certainly seems intent on buying his way back in. Following his termination around 30 executives voiced their opposition and asked the company’s board to reconsider the firing of Dov Charney. After much speculation the company has confirmed that it has been approached with a takeover offer that would reinstate Charney. Bloomberg reports that the proposed takeover is valued at $1.30 to $1.40 per share, which would translate to about $226 to $243 million. Charney has been working with private equity firm Irving Place Capital on a bid to acquire the retailer.