Polaroid Is Sold at Auction

April 6, 2009 By Stephen Silver

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Polaroid Corp. was sold at auction Friday to a private equity partnership called Patriarch Partners. According to the Minneapolis Star Tribune, the winning bid came in at $59.3 million, and requires final approval by a bankruptcy court judge.

The deal includes the company's art collection, and amounts to $43.2 million cash and $7.8 million in stock; Patriarch reportedly beat out two other private equity firms. The new owners say they plan to rebuild the company's brand, and "re-establish Polaroid as a globally acknowledged innovator."

The company was formerly owned by Petters Group Worldwide, before that company unraveled amid revelations of a Ponzi scheme perpetuated by owner Tom Petters. Polaroid declared bankruptcy in December.