Lifetime Brands acquires Kitchen Craft
Lifetime Brands, manufacturers of brands such as Farberware, KitchenAid and Guy Fieri, has acquired Thomas Plant (Birmingham) Limited.
Trading as Kitchen Craft, Thomas Plant is one of the United Kingdom’s leading suppliers of kitchenware products and accessories. Based in Birmingham, the company sells products under well-known proprietary, customer-exclusive and owned label brands. The company supplies more than 2,600 customers in all classes of trade in the U.K. and in more than 70 countries worldwide. As part of the Lifetime Brands platform, the company will operate as a separate division under the continuing leadership of Andrew Plant, Richard Plant and Peter Bushell.
For its fiscal year ended May 27, 2013, Thomas Plant had net revenues of approximately $70 million.
Lifetime expects the acquisition to be accretive to its diluted earnings per share beginning in 2014.
In connection with the acquisition, Lifetime amended and extended its revolving credit facility and entered into a new term loan agreement. The proceeds of the new term loan, together with borrowings under the revolving credit facility, were used to fund the cash portion of the purchase price and to repay the outstanding balance of the company’s existing term loan.
“The acquisition of Thomas Plant represents a compelling opportunity for Lifetime that will accelerate our growth and make Lifetime a more effective global resource to our key retailer partners,” said Jeffrey Siegel, Lifetime’s chairman and CEO. “Kitchen Craft’s broad ranges of kitchenware products fill a gap in our existing UK housewares assortment that will complement the tableware and gift assortments marketed by Creative Tops. We are impressed by the commitment and passion of Kitchen Craft’s management, which has fostered a culture of quality, innovation and outstanding customer service that is very similar to our own. Lifetime’s global presence, capabilities and scale will facilitate Kitchen Craft’s growth in sales and profitability, as well as its expansion into new markets and geographies.”
“This is a milestone for our 164-year old business, which is known for its portfolio of iconic kitchenware brands and its deeply loyal customer base,” added Andrew Plant, Kitchen Craft’s managing director. “Lifetime is known as a stable, long-term owner of businesses and this combination provides us with the ideal platform on which to grow and to support our customers. The acquisition provides us with the resources and scale necessary to drive our future success and will further strengthen our existing product development, sourcing and distribution capabilities.”
The terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.
Lifetime was advised by Livingstone Partners LLP, Gateley LLP and Ernst & Young LLP. The shareholders of Thomas Plant were advised by Clearwater Corporate Finance LLP, Shakespeares Legal LLP and BDO LLP.
Lifetime Brands markets its products under kitchenware brands such as Farberware, KitchenAid, CasaMōda, Cuisine de France, Fred & Friends, Guy Fieri, Hoffritz, Kizmos, Misto, Mossy Oak, Pedrini, Roshco, Sabatier, Savora and Vasconia; respected tableware brands such as Mikasa, Pfaltzgraff, Creative Tops, Gorham, International Silver, Kirk Stieff, Sasaki, Towle Silversmiths, Tuttle, Wallace, V&A and Royal Botanic Gardens Kew; and home solutions brands, including Kamenstein, Bombay,Elements, Melannco and Design for Living. The company also provides exclusive private label products to leading retailers worldwide.