Aurora Capital Group Sells Anthony International to Avista Capital Partners
LOS ANGELES, NEW YORK and SYLMAR, Calif., June 16, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Aurora Capital Group ("Aurora"), a Los Angeles-based private equity firm, today announced that it has completed the sale of Anthony International ("Anthony"), the world's largest and most technologically advanced manufacturer of glass doors and related products serving the global commercial refrigeration market, to Avista Capital Partners ("Avista"), a leading global private equity firm based in New York. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Since Aurora acquired Anthony in 2004, Anthony has achieved significant growth through a number of strategic initiatives, including, among others, the expansion of its international footprint in Europe and Asia and the extension of its offerings into adjacent product lines, such as "re-skinning," the onsite refurbishment of refrigerator and freezer cases.
Gerald L. Parsky, Chairman of Aurora Capital Group, said, "Aurora prides itself on partnering with outstanding middle market companies and providing the resources necessary to enable them to reach a new level of performance. Our partnership with Anthony is a clear demonstration of the successful execution of our strategy. Importantly, I want to thank Anthony's Chief Executive Officer, Jeffrey Clark and the entire Anthony executive team and board of directors for their hard work and significant roles in helping transform Anthony into the industry leader it is today and enabling us to reach this successful transaction. We believe Anthony will continue its strong growth as the commercial refrigeration industry adopts the energy and cost saving technologies for which Anthony has become renowned, and we wish the Company and its new ownership group well."
David Durkin, Partner at Avista Capital Partners, said, "Anthony's strong customer relationships, technological innovation and best-in-class customer service present a compelling investment opportunity for Avista. Anthony perfectly fits our strategy of partnering with superior management teams to invest in and add value to well-positioned businesses. Jeff Clark and the Anthony team have created a market-leading platform, and we look forward to working together to drive the next phase of the Company's growth."
John T. Mapes, Managing Partner of Aurora Private Equity, added, "Aurora has a proven record of partnering with solid management teams to help exceptional companies strengthen their leadership positions and accelerate their growth paths. Our investment in Anthony, and our Partner Mark Rosenbaum's leadership of that effort, are prime examples of our program's strength, and a testament to the depth of our private equity team. The Aurora team has sourced, executed and realized over a decade of successful platform transactions and has created a stable portfolio that, like Anthony, grew through the recent recession and generated outstanding returns for our Limited Partners."
Jeffrey Clark, Chief Executive Officer of Anthony, stated, "Just as our partnership with Aurora was critical in enabling Anthony to become a leader in the U.S. commercial refrigeration industry, we look forward to partnering with Avista Capital Partners to further build upon our success. I am confident that with the continued leadership of our experienced management team, the dedication of our more than 1,000 hardworking employees and the operational and financial expertise of our new owners, Anthony will achieve a new level of performance."
Allen Yurko, an Avista Capital Partners Industry Executive who will join the Company's Board of Directors, commented, "With opportunities to accelerate international expansion and product innovation, we are excited to aid Anthony in continuing its growth trajectory. As Anthony's customers increasingly seek energy-efficiency and cost-savings, the Company is well-positioned to offer solutions and capitalize on the worldwide trend toward energy conservation."
Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC acted as financial advisor and Gibson Dunn & Crutcher LLP acted as legal advisor to Aurora Capital Group. Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP acted as legal advisor to Avista Capital Partners.
About Anthony International
Founded in 1958 and headquartered in Sylmar, CA, Anthony is the world's largest manufacturer of specialty glass, commercial glass refrigerator and freezer doors, case lighting, and display and merchandising systems. Anthony provides customers with the most technologically advanced merchandising systems on the market, offering low-energy products to cut operating costs and help preserve natural resources. Anthony offers up to 70% energy savings by enclosing open refrigerator and freezer cases with Anthony Retrofit doors and Anthony "OptiMax2" LED lighting systems. Anthony serves the commercial refrigeration markets in North America, South America, Asia, and Europe. For more information about Anthony, please visit www.anthonyintl.com.
About Aurora Capital Group
Aurora Capital Group is a Los Angeles-based private investment firm managing over $2.0 billion of capital across several private equity funds. Aurora's traditional private equity vehicle, Aurora Equity Partners, focuses principally on control-investments in middle-market businesses with leading market positions, strong cash flow profiles, and actionable opportunities for growth in partnership with operating management. Aurora Resurgence invests in debt and equity securities of middle-market companies and targets complex situations including corporate carve outs. Aurora's investors include leading public and corporate pension funds, endowments and foundations active in private equity investing. For more information about Aurora Capital Group, visit www.auroracap.com.
About Avista Capital Partners
Avista Capital Partners is a leading private equity firm managing approximately $4 billion of committed capital with offices in New York, Houston, and London. Founded in 2005, Avista's strategy is to make controlling or influential minority investments in growth-oriented energy, healthcare, media, industrial and consumer businesses. Through its team of seasoned investment professionals and industry experts, Avista seeks to partner with exceptional management teams to invest in and add value to well-positioned businesses. For more information about Avista, visit www.avistacap.com.
Media Contacts:
For Aurora Capital Group
Sharon Stern / Blair Fasbender
Joele Frank, Wilkinson Brimmer Katcher
(212) 355-4449
For Avista Capital Partners
James David / Jeffrey Taufield
Kekst and Company
(212) 521-4800
SOURCE Aurora Capital Group
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