PEMBROKE PINES, Fla., May 29 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Claire's Stores,
Inc. (NYSE: CLE) today announced the completion of the merger of the
Company with an affiliate of Apollo Management, L.P.
On March 20, 2007, an affiliate of Apollo Management, L.P. entered into
a merger agreement with Claire's Stores to acquire the Company for a
transaction value of approximately $3.1 billion. Under the terms of the
merger agreement, Claire's Stores shareholders are entitled to receive
$33.00 in cash, without interest, for each share of Claire's common stock
and Class A common stock.
Peter P. Copses, a senior partner of Apollo stated, "We are very
pleased to have completed the acquisition of Claire's. We want to thank the
Schaefer family for building an exceptional business over many years and we
look forward to working with the team at Claire's to build on this legacy."
The Company also announced that Eugene S. Kahn has been appointed Chief
Executive Officer. Mr. Kahn brings over 30 years of retailing experience to
Claire's, having served most recently as the Chairman and Chief Executive
Officer of May Department Stores. Mr. Copses commented, "Gene Kahn is a
proven executive in the retail industry whose leadership skills and
background as an effective merchant were the ideal combination we were
looking for in a CEO for Claire's." Mr. Kahn added, "I am excited about
teaming with Apollo and look forward to leading Claire's, a company with a
strong heritage, a dominant market position and an experienced management
team. The Company has an excellent record built on strong merchandising and
presentation strategies. Claire's has been and remains in the forefront of
global specialty retailing with its self-branded, vertically integrated
approach. I too look forward to working with the entire Claire's team as we
begin the next chapter in the Company's history."
In addition to the appointment of Mr. Kahn as CEO, Claire's also
announced that Mark G. Smith has rejoined the Company as President and
Managing Director of its European Operations. Mr. Smith co-founded one of
the predecessors to Claire's U.K. business and successfully led the
European operations of Claire's from 1996 to 2002. Gene Kahn commented,
"Mark Smith brings us a wealth of experience in European accessories
specialty retailing and an in depth knowledge of Claire's. We are very
pleased to have him return to the Company to lead our efforts in Europe."
Marla Schaefer and Bonnie Schaefer, Claire's former Co-Chairmen and Co-
CEOs jointly stated that, "The decision to sell Claire's to a private
equity firm has been an emotional one, given our family's 30+ year
involvement in building this company. After our Board of Directors engaged
in a lengthy review of the Company's strategic alternatives, we knew that
this decision was the right one to make, both for the shareholders of
Claire's and for the Company as a whole. Now that we have worked with
members of the Apollo team and Gene Kahn for several months, we are
confident that under this new leadership team, Claire's will have the
talent and resources it needs to reach new heights and further its
objective of becoming the world's leading retailer of value priced costume
jewelry and accessories to female tweens, teens and young adults."
As a result of this transaction, Claire's Stores common stock will
cease trading on the New York Stock Exchange at market close today, May 29,
2007, and will be delisted. Shareholders who hold shares of Claire's common
stock or Class A common stock through a bank or broker will not have to
take any action to have their shares converted into cash, since these
conversions will be handled by the bank or broker. As soon as practicable,
American Stock Transfer & Trust Company, a paying agent appointed by
Apollo, will send information to all Claire's Stores shareholders of
record, explaining how they can surrender their shares of Claire's common
stock or Class A common stock in exchange for $33.00 per share in cash,
without interest. Shareholders of record should await this information
before surrendering their shares.
About Claire's Stores, Inc.
Claire's Stores, Inc. is a leading international specialty retailer
offering value-priced costume jewelry and accessories to fashion-aware
tweens, teens and young adult females through its two store concepts:
Claire's and Icing by Claire's. While the latter operates only in North
America, Claire's operates internationally. As of May 5, 2007, Claire's
Stores, Inc. operated approximately 3,000 stores in the United States,
Canada, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, the United Kingdom, Ireland,
France, Switzerland, Austria, Germany, Spain, Portugal, Belgium and the
Netherlands. Claire's Stores, Inc. operates through its subsidiary,
Claire's Nippon, Co., Ltd., approximately 205 stores in Japan as a 50:50
joint venture with AEON, Co., Ltd. (fka JUSCO, Co. Ltd.), a $40 billion
specialty retailer headquartered in Japan. The Company also franchises 145
stores in the Middle East, Turkey, Russia and South Africa.
About Apollo Management, L.P.
Apollo Management is a private investment partnership that manages a
pool of investment capital on behalf of a group of institutional investors
and the principals of Apollo. Since its inception in 1990, Apollo has
invested in excess of $16 billion of equity capital in companies
representing a wide variety of industries, both in the U.S. and
internationally. Apollo is currently in the process of investing its sixth
corporate fund, Apollo Investment Fund VI, L.P., which, with its related
affiliates, has committed capital of approximately $12 billion. Apollo has
considerable experience investing in retail-oriented companies. Apollo's
current retail portfolio includes an investment in Linens 'n Things and a
pending investment in Smart & Final. Apollo's past highly successful retail
investments include General Nutrition Centers, Zale Corporation, AMC
Entertainment, Ralphs Grocery Company, Dominick's Supermarkets, Inc.,
Rent-A-Center, Inc. and Proffitt's Department Stores.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains "forward-looking statements" which
represent the Company's expectations or beliefs with respect to future
events. Statements that are not historical are considered forward-looking
statements. These forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks
and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from
those anticipated. Those factors include, without limitation: changes in
consumer preferences and consumer spending for pre-teen, teen and young
adult apparel and accessories; competition; general economic conditions
such as inflation and increased energy costs; general and political social
conditions such as war, political unrest and terrorism; natural disasters
or severe weather events; currency fluctuations and exchange rate
adjustments; changes in laws; uncertainties generally associated with the
specialty retailing business; disruptions in our supply of inventory;
inability to increase comparable store sales at recent historical rates;
inability to design and implement new information systems; delays in
anticipated store openings or renovations; uncertainty that definitive
financial results may differ from preliminary financial results due to,
among other things, final GAAP adjustments and other changes to comply with
applicable laws, rules and regulations; the reactions of the Company's
customers and suppliers to the transaction; and diversion of management
time on merger-related issues. These and other applicable risks, cautionary
statements and factors that could cause actual results to differ from the
Company's forward-looking statements are included in the Company's filings
with the SEC, specifically as described in the Company's Annual Report on
Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended February 3, 2007. The Company
undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements
to reflect subsequent events or circumstances. The historical results
contained in this press release are not necessarily indicative of the
future performance of the Company.
SOURCE Claire's Stores, Inc.
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Related links:
http://www.clairestores.com/
http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/174913.html /
CONTACT:
Marisa F. Jacobs, Esq., Vice President of
Corporate Communications and Investor Relations of Claire's
Stores, Inc., +1-212-594-3127, Fax +1-212-244-4237,
marisa.jacobs@claires.com; or Steve Anreder of Anreder & Company,
+1-212-532-3232, steven.anreder@Anreder.com, for Apollo
Management, L.P.
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