New York, NY – April 18, 2016 – Castle Harlan, Inc., the New York-based private equity investment firm, announced today that Castle Harlan Partners IV, L.P. has completed the sale of Baker & Taylor, a leading global provider of print and digital books and other multimedia to libraries, institutions and retailers, to Follett Corporation, a leading provider of education technology, services and print and digital content to pre-K and K-12 schools, districts, and college campuses. The combination of the two companies creates the world’s preeminent single source of curated content and multimedia for librarians and educators, with approximately $3.6 billion of combined sales. The value of the transaction was not disclosed.

Baker & Taylor, founded in 1828, is a global leader in the delivery of print and digital books and other multimedia products. With its headquarters in Charlotte, North Carolina, and facilities throughout the U.S., United Kingdom, Mexico and Australia, Baker & Taylor sources print and digital content from approximately 25,000 publishers, and delivers more than 1 million unique products annually to over 20,000 public libraries, institutions and retailers throughout more than 120 countries. Through its customized library services, print on demand capabilities and an innovative and proprietary technology platform, comprised of Title Source 360, Axis 360, CollectionHQ and its recently launched K-12 school classroom software KnowledgePoint, Baker & Taylor provides value-added services to customers across the entire content collection cycle, including new title selection, procurement, processing, content delivery and collection analytics.

Eric Schwartz, Managing Director of Castle Harlan, commented, “We have had a rewarding partnership with the Baker & Taylor management team, which has done an exceptional job developing industry-leading technologies and services that allow us to serve our customers better. The sale of Baker & Taylor to Follett is the right strategic next step for the business, as the two companies complement each other well.”

Once the transaction closes, Follett has said that it expects Baker & Taylor to continue operating as before, serving customers through its existing management team and business operations.

The sale of Baker & Taylor to Follett follows the recent divestitures of two of Baker & Taylor’s former business lines in February of 2015, which marked a refocus for Baker & Taylor on its core business. YBP Library Services, which is a leading provider of collection management and technical services to academic, research and special libraries worldwide, was sold to EBSCO Publishing, Inc. Baker & Taylor Marketing Services' U.S.-based warehouse club business, which is a premier U.S. distributor of books to wholesale membership clubs, and Baker & Taylor Publishing Group, which publishes books under the imprints Silver Dolphin Books, Thunder Bay Press and Portable Press, were sold to Readerlink Distribution Services, LLC.

Sagent Advisors, LLC acted as exclusive financial advisor to Baker & Taylor in the sale to Follett, and Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP acted as legal counsel.

Castle Harlan, founded in 1987, invests in controlling interests in the buyout and development of middle-market companies worldwide. Castle Harlan has completed 55 acquisitions with more than 43,000 employees and total transaction value in excess of $11 billion. Castle Harlan, along with its affiliates, has managed investment funds with equity commitments of over $6 billion. The firm traces its roots to the start of the institutionalized private-equity business in the late 1960s. Since 1999 Castle Harlan has invested in Australia and Southeast Asia with its affiliate CHAMP Private Equity in Sydney and Singapore.

Castle Harlan’s current portfolio companies include Shelf Drilling, the leading global independent provider of shallow water jack-up drilling rig services; Tensar Corporation, the leading global designer and manufacturer of proprietary and highly-engineered non-traditional site development solutions for the infrastructure, transportation, and construction markets; and, Gold Star Foods, the leading nutritional food distributor to K-12 schools in California, Arizona and Nevada.

CHARLOTTE, NC, March 19, 2007 - Baker & Taylor, Inc., the world's largest book distributor, announced today it has completed the acquisition of the wholesale operations of Advanced Marketing Services, the premier distributor of books to membership wholesale clubs.

Advanced Marketing has been in proceedings under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code since December 29, 2006. The U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Delaware, approved the transaction Friday March 9.

Baker & Taylor's acquisition includes Advanced Marketing assets through which it distributes best-sellers, children's books, culinary titles, reference works, and other books to membership warehouse clubs. Baker & Taylor also acquired Advanced Marketing's wholesale distribution operations in the United Kingdom and in Mexico.

Baker & Taylor said it would operate the warehouse club business under a new brand, Baker & Taylor Marketing Services, and intends to resume full shipping operations to the warehouse clubs on Monday March 19.

Richard Willis, Baker & Taylor's chairman and chief executive officer, noted that Advanced Marketing had been the dominant wholesale book club distributor for over 20 years. "The Advanced Marketing acquisition is a perfect fit with Baker & Taylor and gives us a formidable presence in this industry," noted Willis.

"At Baker & Taylor," Willis said, "we have built the world's largest book wholesaler by focusing on the needs of our customers. Advanced Marketing's employees have shown the same dedication and passion for their customers, and we are pleased to be able to give them the opportunity to continue to grow their business."

Baker & Taylor, founded in 1828, is based in Charlotte, North Carolina. Advanced Marketing's headquarters is in San Diego, California. Baker & Taylor Marketing Services will continue to keep its primary office in San Diego and operate warehouses in Indianapolis, Indiana and Sacramento, California.

Baker & Taylor is a portfolio company of Castle Harlan Partners IV, L.P., an investment fund organized and managed by Castle Harlan, Inc., a leading private equity firm based in New York. Castle Harlan acquired Baker & Taylor last summer.

Castle Harlan, founded in 1987, invests in controlling interests in the buyout and development of middle-market companies in North America and Europe. Its team of 20 investment professionals has completed 48 acquisitions since its inception with a total value in excess of $9 billion. The firm traces its roots to the start of the institutionalized private-equity business in the late 1960s.

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; RathGibson, a leader in the manufacture of stainless steel and high alloy precision-welded tubing, and Perkins & Marie Callender's, Inc., which operates and franchises 618 family restaurants in the United States and Canada.

NEW YORK, July 5, 2006 - Castle Harlan, Inc., the New York-based private equity firm, announced today it has completed the acquisition of Baker & Taylor, a leading global distributor of books and entertainment products to libraries and retailers. The value of the transaction was approximately $455 million.

Baker & Taylor, founded in 1828 and based in Charlotte, North Carolina, was acquired for Castle Harlan Partners IV, L.P., a $1.2-billion limited partnership that closed in August 2003. The seller was Willis Stein & Partners, a private equity firm in Chicago.

The company is the leading distributor of books, video and music products to public and academic libraries throughout the world, serving customers in more than 125 countries. It is also a leader in distributing books and entertainment products to major retailers worldwide, including Internet retailers, as well as independent book, music and video stores.

Gary Appel, Castle Harlan vice chairman who led the transaction team, noted the company's strong and consistent pattern of growth, especially in its "premier library-based business and the increasingly important direct-to-home distribution for Internet retailers."

"Both are service areas that management expects will continue to show solid gains in the years ahead," Appel said.

Appel said that the "experienced and effective management team," headed by Richard Willis, president and chief executive officer, will remain in place and continue to hold an ownership stake in the company.

Castle Harlan invests in controlling interests in the buyout and development of middle-market companies in North America and Europe. Its team of 10 managing directors has completed 45 acquisitions since its inception with a total value in excess of $8.7 billion. The firm traces its roots to the start of the institutionalized private-equity business in the late 1960s.

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; RathGibson, Inc., a leading manufacturer of highly engineered premium stainless steel and alloy welded tubing products, and Perkins Restaurant & Bakery, the operator and franchisor of 480 family restaurants.

NEW YORK, May 11, 2006 - Castle Harlan, Inc., the New York-based private equity investment firm, announced today that a private-equity investment fund it organized and manages has agreed to buy privately held Baker & Taylor, a leading domestic and international distributor of books and entertainment products to libraries and retailers, in a transaction valued at $455 million.

Baker & Taylor, founded in 1828, is the world's leading distributor of books, video, and music products to public and academic libraries. It is also a global leader in the distribution of books and entertainment products to many of the country's leading retailers, including Internet retailers, as well as thousands of independent book, music and video stores.

"The company is a leader in its industry and shows very strong and consistent year-to-year growth," said Gary Appel, Castle Harlan vice chairman who led the firm's transaction team. "This is especially true in its premier library-based business and in the direct to home distribution of products for Internet retailers. Both are service areas that management expects will continue to show solid annual gains in the years ahead."

"Baker & Taylor has a large, loyal, premier customer base," Appel added. "The experienced management team led by Richard Willis, president and chief executive officer, that has directed its growth will continue to manage the business as our partners, and senior management will continue to retain an ownership stake in the company."

"Castle Harlan has a strong track record of working with management teams to create value in their companies," Willis said. "I'm looking forward to working with the firm to continue to build on the success we have had serving our institutional and retail customers."

Baker & Taylor is based in Charlotte, North Carolina and is ranked in the top 200 US private companies by Forbes magazine. It serves customers in 98 countries around the world and has six distribution facilities strategically located throughout the country.

The company is being sold by an investment partnership organized by Willis Stein & Partners, a private equity firm in Chicago. It had acquired Baker & Taylor in 2003. Consummation of the transaction with Castle Harlan is contingent upon the satisfaction of customary legal and business conditions.

Castle Harlan invests in controlling interests in the buyout and development of middle-market companies in North America and Europe. Its team of 10 managing directors, including its founders, has completed 43 acquisitions since its inception with a total value in excess of $8 billion. It is currently investing its fourth fund, Castle Harlan Partners IV, which closed in August 2003 with capital commitments of $1.2 billion. The firm traces its roots to the start of the institutionalized private-equity business in the late 1960s.

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; Horizon Lines, one of the largest U.S. container shipping companies, and Perkins Restaurant & Bakery, which is the operator and franchisor of 480 family restaurants.