Aéropostale, Inc., a specialty retailer of casual apparel for young women and men, today announced that the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York has given final approval for the Company to access $160 million in debtor in-possession ("DIP") financing provided by Crystal Financial LLC. The Court previously had given interim approval for the DIP financing agreement on May 5, 2016. This financing, combined with Aéropostale's operating cash flow, will allow the Company to meet its financial commitments and enable Aéropostale to focus on completing its restructuring process, confirming a plan of reorganization and emergence from Chapter 11 during the third quarter of 2016.

"We are pleased that the Court has approved our DIP financing," said Julian Geiger, Chief Executive Officer. "We are looking forward to emerging from this process as a leaner, more efficient business and firmly believe that we will be well-positioned to compete and succeed in today's retail environment."

As announced on May 4, 2016, Aéropostale filed voluntary petitions under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy code in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York in an effort to optimize its store footprint, renegotiate burdensome contracts, resolve its ongoing disputes with Sycamore Partners and achieve long-term financial stability.

Aéropostale is advised in this transaction by Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP, Stifel Financial Corp. and FTI Consulting.