NEW YORK, March 7, 2007 - Castle Harlan, Inc., the New York-based private equity investment firm, announced today that its Australian affiliate, CHAMP Private Equity, has acquired Blue Star Print Group Ltd., the leading printing company in New Zealand. The transaction was valued at NZ$385 million (US$267 million).
CHAMP acquired Blue Star from management, but senior managers, including Executive Chairman Tom Sturgess, will continue to run the company and hold a substantial ownership stake in the business.
Castle Harlan Australian Mezzanine Partners Pty Ltd. (CHAMP Private Equity), successor to the oldest private equity fund in the region, was formed in 2000. It is one of the largest private equity groups in Australasia. Based in Sydney, CHAMP Private Equity is adviser to the CHAMP I and CHAMP II funds, which have A$1.5 billion of equity commitments for buyouts.
The CHAMP I Funds have completed seven management buyouts with a combined transaction value in excess of A$1.2 billion. They included Austar Communications, Australia's second largest subscription TV operator; Bradken Limited, a leading Australian manufacturer of steel consumables and capital equipment for the mining and railroad industries, and Penrice Limited, the only manufacturer of sodium carbonate (soda ash) and sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) in Southeast Asia. CHAMP is currently investing equity from the CHAMP II funds.
Castle Harlan, founded in 1987, invests in controlling interests in the buyout and development of middle-market companies in North America, Europe and, via CHAMP Private Equity, Australasia. Its team of 20 investment professionals in New York has completed 48 acquisitions since its inception with a total value in excess of US$9 billion.
Castle Harlan's current portfolio companies, which employ more than 42,000 people, include Ames True Temper, a leading manufacturer of lawn and garden tools and accessories; Baker & Taylor, the leading global distributor of books and entertainment products to libraries and retailers, and Perkins & Marie Callender's, Inc., which operates and franchises 618 family restaurants in the United States and Canada.