Brierley Investments Ltd., owner of the Higbee...

Brierley Investments Ltd., owner of the Higbee Co. department store chain, has entered an agreement with Youngstown, Ohio-based Edward J. DeBartolo Corp. and Dillard Department Stores, Little Rock, Ark., under which DeBartolo and Dillard will acquire and operate the Cleveland-based chain. Completion of the sale is expected in early February. The price was not disclosed. Higbee’s, which operates 14 department/specialty stores in northeastern Ohio, will continue to operate under its current name. Higbee’s reported $299.8 million in sales for fiscal year 1986 with projected sales of $312 million in 1987. New Zealand-based Brierley said it was “interested in selling only to a buyer who would support the continued growth of Higbee’s.”