Spirit Airlines is cutting about 200 jobs companywide because the struggling budget carrier tries to chop costs after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in November.

“These decisions were not made lightly as we know they impact professional and personal lives,” CEO Ted Christie wrote in an worker memo seen by CNBC. “As you all know, we are facing significant challenges with our business, which is why we have focused on taking measures to optimize our organization and increase efficiency. The bottom line is that we need to run a smaller airline and get back on better financial footing.

Spirit had about 13,000 employees at the time of its bankruptcy filing, about 84% of whom were represented by unions, according to a court filing. The job cuts affect non-union positions and are part of the company's plan to cut costs by $80 million.

“With all of these actions, coupled with this week’s workforce reductions, we have now reached our $80 million cost savings goal,” Christie wrote.

The Dania Beach, Florida-based airline had previously furloughed tons of of pilots and offered prolonged voluntary leaves of absence to flight attendants to chop costs. The company has also downsized its network and reached deals to sell a part of its Airbus aircraft fleet to boost money.

Spirit has been struggling because the proposed merger JetBlue was blocked by a federal court a yr ago on antitrust grounds, adding to struggles which have also included a Pratt & Whitney engine recall and a post-pandemic spike in labor costs.

Christie said the airline remains to be on target to exit bankruptcy this quarter.

Four years after emerging from bankruptcy, Chuck E. Cheese is making a comeback because of a dramatic remodel to introduce its games and pizza to a brand new generation.

In June 2020, as some states began lifting their pandemic lockdowns, CEC Entertainment, the parent company of Chuck E. Cheese, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Months later, the corporate emerged from bankruptcy under recent leadership, reeling from debt Approximately $705 million is exempt.

Even as Covid eased, the corporate faced one other existential threat: determining find out how to keep kids — and their paying parents — entertained within the age of iPads and smartphones. The company has spent greater than $300 million in recent times to handle this challenge – and the investment is beginning to repay.

CEC Entertainment, which also owns Pasqually's Pizza & Wings and Peter Piper Pizza, posted eight straight months of same-store sales growth, in line with CEO Dave McKillips. The company shouldn’t be publicly traded but discloses its financial results to bond investors.

CEC Entertainment's annual revenue increased from $912 million in 2019 to roughly $1.2 billion in 2023. in line with Reuters. And that’s with fewer Chuck E. Cheese locations open. The chain currently has 470 U.S. locations, up from 537 in 2019.

Sustaining growth won’t be easy. Like all restaurants, the chain must win over consumers who’re eating out less due to rising costs. Chuck E. Cheese also must capture the eye of kids and fogeys in a fragmented media market.

Since Atari founder Nolan Bushnell opened his first location in San Jose in 1977, Chuck E. Cheese has change into a staple of many childhoods, known for its pizza, birthday parties and animatronic mouse mascot and band.

After bankruptcy, Chuck E. Cheese and its stores underwent a remodel that gave its current locations a totally different look. Gone are the animatronics, SkyTube tunnels and physical tickets of yore. Instead, they were replaced with trampolines, a mobile app and floor-to-ceiling JumboTrons.

These changes got here from McKillips, a former Six Flags manager. He joined the corporate in January 2020, just months before lockdowns would temporarily close all locations. As of April 2021, the corporate raised $650 million in bonds, which it issued for its restaurants.

“The company suffered from a lack of capital for many, many years. It hasn't been rebuilt. Nothing was touched,” he said.

Apollo Global Management took Chuck E. Cheese private in 2014. Five years later, CEC Entertainment attempted to go public through a merger with a special purpose vehicle. But the deal was abandoned without explanation.

The recent money prompted an open have a look at the Chuck E. Cheese model – including his iconic animatronic bandwith Charles Entertainment Cheese and his friends.

“We took out the animatronics. It was a hot debate for numerous long-established bands, but kids consumed entertainment in a really different way, you already know, growing up with screens and ever-changing, bite-sized entertainment,” McKillips said.

The chain also revamped its menu and switched to made-from-scratch pizzas. Kidz Bop became an official music partner. Other kid-friendly brands such as Paw Patrol, Marvel and Nickelodeon became partners for its games.

And then came the trampolines.

“We found a great opportunity for ourselves… active play,” McKillips said. He added that growth in the family entertainment category was largely driven by activity-based businesses such as trampoline parks and climbing walls.

The company tested the trampolines first in Brooklyn and then in Miami, St. Louis and Orlando. As of December, 450 Chuck E. Cheese locations have child-sized trampolines. And unlike the SkyTubes or ball pits of the past, customers have to pay extra to use trampolines. (The ball pits disappeared from Chuck E. Cheese locations in 2011, while SkyTubes continued to exist for another decade or so.)

After the company spent $350 million remodeling Chuck E. Cheese locations, McKillips now says the process is complete.

“We had to repair the product. The product is repaired,” he said.

Another focus was on reintroducing customers to the brand – especially adults who only know Chuck E. Cheese from their own childhood.

“You come in when you’re about three years old, you go out when you’re about eight or nine years old, and you don’t come back for 15 years. We had to go and talk to a whole new generation of kids, and we weren't on the air during Covid. We “I had to build all of this,” McKillips said.

For example, Chuck E. Cheese's birthday business, one of the company's best marketing tools, has struggled in the wake of the pandemic. Today it is back to pre-pandemic levels.

And as Chuck E. Cheese felt the effects of a slowdown in consumer spending last year that hit many restaurants from McDonald's to Outback Steakhouse, the chain had to find a way to appeal to the value-oriented customer.

Over the summer, Chuck E. Cheese launched a two-month, tiered subscription program that offered unlimited visits and discounts on food, drinks and games. Membership encouraged families to visit more frequently than the usual two or three annual visits. The subscription starts at $7.99 per month, with additional tiers at $11.99 and $29.99 that promise deeper discounts and more games played.

“In 2023 we sold 79,000 passes. “This year, we sold almost 400,000 passes over the same period,” McKillips said, looking ahead to 2024. “That shows that the consumer is looking for value and spending when they get a good return on their spending.”

In the fall, the company built on the success of the passes with a 12-month membership and has already sold more than 100,000 of them.

McKillips' biggest dreams for the chain and its mascots lie outside the four walls of her restaurants.

“There's another cutie in Orlando who does this pretty well, so I see us the same way, but we're just getting started,” McKillips said.

In addition to 30 licensing deals for everything from frozen pizza to apparel, McKillips said Chuck E. Cheese is also exploring various entertainment partnerships that would make its mouse mascot a main character.

And that's not all. The company has explored the possibility of a game show. It has one prolific YouTube channelwith videos that concentrate on its characters, not pizza or games.

In addition, Chuck E. Cheese himself has six albums available on streaming platforms and his band plays choreographed live live shows.

“My dream would be to have a feature film,” McKillips said.

Spirit Airlines has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, becoming the primary major U.S. passenger airline to achieve this since then American Airlines 13 years ago.

However, the icon of budget travel shouldn’t be going away. The filing will give Spirit time and protection to restructure, allowing the airline to proceed flying and bringing in much-needed money.

CEO Ted Christie wrote to customers on Monday to reassure them that they will proceed to book flights and use loyalty points or credits as usual.

Here's what travelers must know:

Spirit Airlines has suffered losses since 2019, but financial problems deepened after the pandemic as industry costs rose, dozens of its Airbus jets were grounded due to an engine recall and a federal judge blocked Spirit's planned takeover JetBlue Airways.

The airline has struggled to renegotiate its $1.1 billion in debt payments due next yr. An end-of-year deadline tied to the bank card processing agreement was fast approaching.

Spirit said Monday that it has entered right into a pre-agreed agreement with the vast majority of its bondholders for a “streamlined” Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection plan. This process is anticipated to be accomplished in the primary quarter of 2025.

Filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection doesn’t mean that the airline will stop operations. Rather, it provides the airline with protection when restructuring its business, which regularly means losing assets or parts of its operations.

“From a consumer perspective, you have to pay attention to whether Spirit makes schedule changes or gets rid of planes or lays off pilots and flight attendants — that will have an impact on the traveling public,” said Henry Harteveldt, founding father of travel consulting firm Atmosphere Research Group.

The airline will likely maintain as much of its schedule as possible for the vacation season, when airlines generate a variety of revenue in the course of the popular travel season, but further cuts are unlikely to be long in coming.

Under US regulations, airline customers are entitled to a money refund if the airline cancels their flight and so they aren’t rebooked. Spirit Airlines said Monday it plans to proceed flying, and CEO Ted Christie sought to reassure customers whose bookings in the course of the peak holiday season will herald needed money.

However, the Ministry of Transport warns against this Bankruptcy protection could make it tougher to get a refund.

“If the airline or ticket agent has declared bankruptcy, the company may be temporarily prohibited from providing refunds and/or vouchers – for example, to preserve assets,” the web site says.

The agency says that if an airline that has filed for bankruptcy refuses to reimburse you for a canceled or significantly modified flight, your bank card could provide a refund under the Fair Credit Billing Act.

Even if you happen to get a refund, buying a last-minute airline ticket to switch your original flight could be costly attributable to high demand and limited seats. Harteveldt recommends at all times purchasing airline tickets with a bank card, because it offers customers higher cancellation protection than debit cards or money. If travelers are concerned, they also can book a refundable ticket with one other airline, although this can be very costly.

Travel insurance could They also cover prepaid expenses if the airline's flights change attributable to bankruptcy.

This stays to be seen. Spirit expects the corporate to exit Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the primary quarter of next yr. Airlines can emerge from this process as smaller, less expensive airlines. Other airlines lacking planes could snap up a few of Spirit's assets.

Spirit had a deal to merge with one other discount retailer Border before JetBlue got here in with a competing offer. Frontier and Spirit could attempt a merger again, especially as some industry players imagine the brand new Trump administration will probably be relatively friendly to dealmaking.

Spirit AirlinesA low-cost airline icon that transformed the industry has filed for bankruptcy protection after years of mounting losses, a failed merger, increasing competition and more demanding consumer demands.

The carrier reached an agreed appointment early Monday act with its bondholders, including $300 million in debtor-in-possession financing to assist it through bankruptcy, which the corporate says it plans to exit in the primary quarter of next yr. Spirit said sellers and aircraft lessors wouldn’t be impacted. In a court filing, Spirit listed its assets and liabilities between $1 billion and $10 billion.

The airline said it expects this proceed operationsand CEO Ted Christie sought to reassure customers that they might still book, fly and redeem loyalty points with the airline.

“The most important thing you need to know is that you can continue to book and fly now and in the future,” Christie said in a letter to customers on Monday.

Spirit is the primary major U.S. airline to file for Chapter 11 since American Airlines 13 years ago.

The Dania Beach, Florida-based airline has struggled with an engine recall that grounded dozens of its jets, an increase in costs following the pandemic and the collapse of a planned takeover JetBlue Airwayswhich was blocked by a federal judge earlier this yr on antitrust grounds. Its shares have fallen greater than 90% this yr.

The airline had repeatedly pushed back a deadline with its bank card processor to renegotiate $1.1 billion in loyalty bonds due next yr or risk losing the power to process transactions.

On Monday it said it had reached an agreement with bondholders for $350 million in equity and that bondholders would exchange $795 million for equity. Spirit shares will likely be delisted from the New York Stock Exchange pursuant to its filing with the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York.

Last week, Spirit said it could must delay its quarterly filings and said it was in negotiations for a take care of nearly all of creditors that will haven’t any impact on customers, vendors, vendors and others but would wipe out the corporate's existing equity .

Spirit had said its third-quarter operating margins could be 12 percentage points below the negative 15% margin the corporate posted a yr ago as costs soared and fares fell. Sales fell $61 million.

The airline hasn't made a profit since 2019 and lost greater than $335 million in the primary half of the yr.

To make up the difference, the corporate sold dozens of jets to get monetary savings, which worked in its favor as planes are in brief supply this yr. Most recently, 23 Airbus aircraft were sold to GA Telesis to generate $519 million. Spirit has said it plans to finish the yr with roughly $1 billion in liquidity.

The company also plans to furlough one other 330 pilots in January, on top of about 200 in September, as routes were cut. However, analysts imagine that the airline could have to shrink further in bankruptcy to get costs under control.

Spirit's business model, offering every part from reserved seats to carry-on luggage at rock-bottom prices and costs, was a hit with bargain-hunting customers and enabled expansion over greater than a decade.

His unpretentious service became a preferred punchline for stand-up comics. A greeting Map A drawing of one in every of the airline's yellow planes even reads, “I would fly Spirit Airlines for you.”

The low fare and extra fee model led to similar offers from larger airlines akin to delta, American And Unitedwhich introduced basic economy fares.

However, Spirit struggled within the wake of the pandemic as costs rose across the industry and the lifting of travel restrictions sparked a surge in bookings for international travel outside of Spirit's network. Fares fell within the oversupplied US market.

Spirit this summer began offering bundled fares with seat assignments and other perks, in addition to a variety of “First Class” that included larger seats on the front of the plane, as many travelers opted to pay for roomier seats on board.

In January, a federal judge blocked JetBlue's planned $3.8 billion takeover of Spirit. At the start of 2022, Spirit entered right into a merger agreement with one other low-cost airline Border before JetBlue made a proposal in April of that yr. Spirit shareholders supported JetBlue's money offer.

Judge William Young, appointed by former President Ronald Reagan, said the JetBlue deal would drive up prices and reduce competition. Airlines had argued that this may help them higher compete, particularly within the United States, where 4 airlines control about three-quarters of the market.

“Spirit is a small airline. But there are those who love her,” Young wrote in his ruling. “To Spirit’s dedicated customers, this is for you.”

Some analysts expect Frontier and Spirit to resume talks in the approaching months.

German aerospace startup lily There is a risk of bankruptcy if the state government doesn’t provide emergency aid for the southeastern state of Bavaria.

Bankruptcy would mark a dramatic decline for a startup once touted as Europe's best likelihood to construct the twenty first century equivalent of flying “cars.”

Lilium is one among quite a few firms attempting to construct “eVTOLs,” or electric vertical takeoff and landing vehicles.

These vehicles, popularly often called flying cars or air taxis, are being developed by startups within the US, Europe and Asia.

Today, nevertheless, Lilium is in trouble. The company is desperately attempting to collect tax money in Germany. And to date it has been unsuccessful.

Lilium is negotiating an emergency capital injection with each the German federal government and the Bavarian state government.

The company had applied for 50 million euros ($54 million) in loans from the federal government. However, his request was rejected by the German legislature.

In a regulatory filing published last week, Lilium said it had “received indications that the Budget Committee of the Bundestag of the Federal Republic of Germany will not agree to a €50 million guarantee for a planned €100 million convertible loan.”

The proposed state aid would have been issued by KfW, the German state development bank.

Lilium “is continuing discussions with the Free State of Bavaria regarding a guarantee of at least 50 million euros,” Lilium added in its filing.

A Lilium spokesperson told CNBC the corporate doesn’t intend to offer further comment beyond the statement set out in its 6K filing.

In response to Germany's decision to disclaim Lilium state aid, Hubert Aiwanger, Bavaria's economics minister, said: criticized the moveIt is “regrettable” that the federal government has decided to not support the corporate.

Danijel Višević, co-founder of Berlin-based climate technology investor World Fund, said that while it was “understandable” that lawmakers withheld support for Lilium because they feared the federal government was favoring one individual company over one other, it was common amongst politicians There is a misconception that air taxis are “toys for millionaires”. That idea was “too short-sighted,” he said.

Višević said it was unfair that US electric automobile maker Tesla – which burned through billions of dollars before turning a profit – was once in a position to get a loan from the US government, but Lilium was not.

“Flying cars” won’t be the proper term. But what Lilium ultimately desired to bring to the world was a vertical takeoff and landing aircraft that might fly people from one city to a different to ease congestion on the streets.

The company initially desired to launch its own digital “hailing” service that will have allowed users to order rides on their jets from specific locations where the vehicle could take off and land.

Lilium then decided to alter its business model.

Instead of developing your entire service itself, the corporate selected to partner with airlines and airport operators who would construct the service product and infrastructure needed to understand its ambitions.

Lilium's jets can cost as much as $9 million. The company also had a six-seat version in development, which might have cost a buyer around $7 million.

Lilium made big deals with people like Lufthansa in Germany and Saudia in Saudi Arabia. A collaboration was also agreed with Groupe ADP, a global airport operator based in Paris.

Lilium was founded in 2015 by 4 university students and quickly gained a fame as one among the best-funded air taxi firms in Europe.

The company managed to boost a whole lot of thousands and thousands of dollars from investors comparable to Chinese firms Tencent, Atomico and Earlybird.

In September 2021, Lilium went public on the Nasdaq stock exchange through a merger with a special purpose acquisition company called SPAC Qell.

At its peak, Lilium was price as much as $3.3 billion. Its shares have fallen to lower than 50 cents – a drop of greater than 95% since its stock market debut.

Spirit Airlines Shares fell to a record low on Friday after news that the corporate is exploring Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The airline faces a deadline this month to renegotiate greater than $1 billion in debt.

A bankruptcy filing would mark a dramatic turnaround for the airline with its iconic yellow planes aimed toward budget travelers.

Profitable and on-time before the pandemic, Spirit's no-frills service became a punchline for late-night comedians and a thorn within the side of major network airlines. He lured customers with double-digit fares and charges for every little thing from seat reservations to carry-on luggage.

But major airlines soon successfully copied much of this business model with their lowest base fares. And a federal judge blocked Spirit's planned takeover earlier this 12 months JetBlue Airways For antitrust reasons, stopping what each airlines claimed was a very important solution to compete with larger rivals. The failed deal left Spirit alone to fight with a Pratt & Whitney Engine recalls, changing consumer travel habits and better costs.

After the JetBlue deal fell through, Spirit said in January that it was exploring options to refinance its debt.

Spirit has $1.1 billion in loyalty program-backed debt due next September. You have until October twenty first to refinance or extend this secured notes.

The airline has been loss-making since 2020 and has reported disappointing results this 12 months, including a lack of nearly $193 million within the second quarter. The company has spent much of this 12 months searching for cost cuts, including furloughing pilots, cutting flights and postponing orders for Airbus jetliners.

Spirit has reduced its capability growth plans for November and December by about 17%, Brandon Oglenski, airline analyst at Barclays, said earlier this week.

“As previously mentioned, Spirit has implemented a comprehensive plan to help us become more competitive, strengthen our balance sheet and return to profitability,” CEO Ted Christie said in a note to employees on Friday. “We continue to have productive discussions with our bondholders and are focused on achieving the best outcome for the company as quickly as possible.”

A Spirit spokesman declined to comment on a the Wall Street Journal report that the freight forwarder is considering filing for bankruptcy. Spirits consultant Perella Weinberg Partners declined to comment.

Spirit's stock price fell greater than 24% to a record low of $1.69 on Friday. Shares are down nearly 90% to this point this 12 months.

Shares of Frontier Airlines, The originally planned merger with fellow budget airline Spirit ahead of JetBlue's entry in 2022 rose 16% on Friday. Shares of other airlines also rose.

BurgerFi The company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Tuesday, lower than a month after warning investors there have been “substantial doubts” about its ability to proceed operating.

The company joins a protracted list of restaurant chains which have needed to file for bankruptcy to get their business back on target – from Red Lobster to Buca di Beppo. In general, the restaurant industry is battling declining customer numbers and high rates of interest – each chains and independents and franchises.

BurgerFi, known for its higher-quality burgers, was founded in 2011. It went public in 2020 through a take care of a special purpose acquisition company, which briefly became a preferred alternative to a standard IPO resulting from its speed and fewer regulatory scrutiny. Months later, the corporate bought Anthony's Coal Fired Pizza & Wings for $156.6 million.

According to a bankruptcy filing, BurgerFi has assets between $50 million and $75 million and total debts between $100 million and $500 million.

For the quarter ended April 1, BurgerFi reported revenue of $42.9 million and a net lack of $6.5 million. Sales on the burger chain of the identical name fell 13 percent.

With its two brands, the corporate has 162 restaurants, about half of that are operated by franchisees as of April 1.

Blink Fitness, a low-cost gym chain owned by luxury fitness company Equinox Group, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

The fitness brand, which has over 100 centers across the U.S., is the newest chain to file for bankruptcy following the pandemic, following firms similar to New York Sports Club, 24 Hour Fitness and Gold's Gym.

The company plans to sell its business and has listed its assets and liabilities at $100 million and $500 million, respectively. It plans to proceed operating its fitness centers throughout the sale process, in response to a press release.

“Over the past few months, we have focused on strengthening Blink's financial foundation and positioning the company for long-term success,” said Guy Harkless, CEO and president of Blink Fitness, in a press release. “After evaluating our options, the board and management team have determined that utilizing the court-supervised process to optimize the company's image and complete a sale of the company is the best path forward.”

This shouldn’t be step one taken by the Equinox Group to enhance the corporate's funds. Luxury fitness center Equinox, which belongs to the group alongside brands similar to SoulCycle and Pure Yoga, accomplished a transaction valued at $1.8 billion. Financing round in March, partly to refinance its $1.2 billion in debt.

The privately held company said it saw a 27% increase in revenue in 2023 and that membership numbers are nearly back to pre-pandemic levels. Equinox is currently planning to open greater than two dozen latest locations worldwide.

To improve its funds, Equinox also introduced a $40,000 annual gym membership for its most affluent members earlier this 12 months.

All this comes as a CNBC/Generation Lab survey on “Youth and Money” – which surveyed 1,034 people ages 18 to 34 within the U.S. in August – found that a couple of third of Americans in that age group spend between $1 and $50 a month on sports and fitness, while 47 percent say they spend “nothing at all.”

Blink offers memberships starting from $17 to $39 per thirty days, depending on location, and competes with other low-cost gym chains like Planet Fitnesswhich raised the worth of its basic membership to $15 per thirty days in June.

Unlike Blink, Planet Fitness reported strong membership growth of seven% 12 months over 12 months within the second quarter, reaching a complete of 19.7 million members. Planet Fitness shares recently hit a 52-week high, reaching levels not seen since May 2023.