Clearwater International advises on the MBO of independent corporate clothing group in £50m deal

Clearwater International has provided corporate finance support for the management buy-out of the corporate clothing division of US-based Tailored Brands, Inc (NYSE:TLRD) in a deal which values the group at £50m. The team provided advice in relation to raising the equity and debt, and led negotiations with the vendors.

The group is the UK’s largest supplier of corporate clothing uniforms to businesses and individuals. It trades internationally through its Dimensions, Alexandra, Yaffy and Twin Hill brands.

Midlands based Dimensions is the UK market leader in supplying corporate clothing solutions through multi-year managed service contracts. Dimensions has an impressive portfolio of over 100 major client accounts and delivers bespoke uniforms to millions of wearers across multiple industry sectors both in the UK and internationally.

The group also includes West Country based Alexandra, which offers a comprehensive range of catalogue garments and accessories from stock, to public and private sector businesses, across a wide range of sectors including healthcare and facilities management both in the UK and internationally.

Yaffy, based in Glasgow, is a leading supplier of high performance outerwear and technical clothing to UK police forces. Yaffy is also a key supplier of uniform equipment carriers to various forces.

The group also provides corporate workwear in the US through its brand Twin Hill. Twin Hill services large-scale uniform programmes for major managed clients.

Collectively the group employs more than 800 people across its offices in Castle Donington, Thornbury, Glasgow and Houston, and for the current financial year it is on target to record combined revenues of more than £150m.

The management buy-out team has been led by Executive Chairman Stuart Graham, Group Chief Financial Officer Morgan Atherton, Dimensions Managing Director Hayley Brooks, and Alexandra Managing Director Martin Lyne, as they embark on the next stage of the group’s growth strategy.

The corporate clothing group now plans to invest in its current service lines and infrastructure to accelerate organic growth at home and overseas, in addition to exploring complementary acquisitions to drive further international expansion.

The Clearwater International team comprised Partners Jon Hustler and Rob Burden, supported by Director Karen Edwards and Senior Associate Mike Slater, with debt advisory services provided by Partner Mark Taylor, assisted by Director Glenn Clarke and Associate Director David Grassby.

Stuart Graham, Executive Chairman of the Group said:

“We have been part of Tailored Brands for almost a decade and during that time we have built our business into a truly global player. Clearwater did a fantastic job in managing negotiations and supporting management to complete the deal. With LDC as our growth partner, we are focused on investing in our proposition, taking our market-leading products and services to more customers at home and overseas, and ensuring our business has solid foundations for future growth.”

Rob Burden, Partner at Clearwater International added:

“We were delighted to work with such a talented team to help them achieve their ambitions. It is a well established high quality group with exciting prospects and we know the team, with the support of LDC and PNC, are ready to take full advantage of this opportunity. We wish them every success for the future.”

The transaction was funded by LDC and PNC Business Credit.

Legal advice was provided to the management buy-out team and Newco by Browne Jacobson along with US lawyers, Troutman Sanders LLP. Eversheds Sutherland advised LDC and Taylor Wessing advised PNC. Commercial due diligence was provided by LEK Consulting with financial and tax due diligence by KPMG.