Oct. 20--Bankrupt menswear retailer S&K Famous Brands Inc. has asked a federal judge for permission to auction off its name, Web site and trademark.

The initial, stalking-horse bid for the rights to the company's intellectual property is set at $165,000.

Falling sales brought on by the economic downturn forced S&K into Chapter 11 bankruptcy in February. In May, the company said it was unable to find a buyer or the financing to continue operating and began liquidating its 105 remaining stores.

The retailer had employed about 750 people.

The intellectual property up for sale includes S&K's name, trademarks and copyrights. Several of S&K's private label brands are part of the sale.

Information on more than 2.5 million customers is also part of the sale.

According to the sale agreement, the buyer must allow customers to "opt out" if any changes are made to S&K's current privacy policy.

A hearing is scheduled for Oct. 27 in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Richmond.

If the judge approves the sale, prospective buyers will have until Nov. 6 to submit bids. The company would begin the auction Nov. 10. S&K would return to court in Richmond on Nov. 20 for a sale hearing.

The auction process has not always gone well for S&K.

In May, a liquidation specialist set the stalking-horse bid for the chain at $7.9 million. But because the value of the inventory dropped, the winning bid came in at $7.3 million.

The buyer of the intellectual property would likely sell through S&K's Web site.

"We're confident that the new owners of these brands will be able to turn their recognition into instant customer loyalty," said Margaret Birlem, a partner with Strambankk LLC, the Massachusetts-based firm handling the marketing and sale of the intellectual property.

Earlier this year, Circuit City Stores Inc. sold its intellectual property for $14 million to N.Y.-based consumer-electronics retailer Systemax Inc., which is operating CircuitCity.com.

S&K was founded in 1967 by I.J. "Hip" Siegel and his brother-in-law, Abe M. Kaminsky, who bought end-of-the-season men's suits from retailers and sold the clothing from the back of the family station wagon. ------

Contact Louis Llovio at (804) 649-6348 or LLLovio@timesdispatch.com.

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