Transaction to create new publicly traded consumer goods services industry leader
Advantage Solutions Inc. (“Advantage”), the leading provider of outsourced sales and marketing services to consumer goods manufacturers and retailers, has entered into a merger agreement to combine with Conyers Park II Acquisition Corp. (“Conyers Park”), a publicly traded special purpose acquisition company founded by consumer goods and finance industry executives with a history of value creation. At the closing of the transaction, Advantage is expected to become a publicly traded company. The transaction implies an initial enterprise value for Advantage of approximately $5.2 billion or 10.1x its estimated 2021 Adjusted EBITDA of $515 million.
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Advantage’s data and technology-enabled omnichannel solutions — including sales, retail merchandising, business intelligence, digital commerce and marketing services — help brands and retailers drive consumer demand, increase sales and achieve operating efficiencies across all key channels, including e-commerce. After 30 years as a privately held business, Advantage will have greater financial flexibility to invest in its business as a publicly listed company.
Financing for the transaction includes secured commitments for a $700 million common stock private placement at $10 per share. Existing private equity partners of Advantage, including CVC Fund VI, Green Equity Investors VI and Bain Capital Private Equity, in addition to rolling over their entire existing stake in the business, are investing an additional $200 million in the company as part of the $700 million common stock private placement. The remaining $500 million of common stock raised in the private placement has been committed by institutional investors that include both existing Conyers Park investors and new investors. These funds, along with up to $450 million in cash from Conyers Park’s trust account containing the proceeds of its initial public offering and the new debt financing, are expected to be used to refinance existing debt at Advantage.
Tanya Domier, current chief executive officer of Advantage, will continue in that role after the closing of the transaction and lead the company along with the current management team. Current directors of Conyers Park, Jim Kilts, who will be chairman of the newly combined company, Dave West and Brian Ratzan, will join the Advantage board of directors.
“Our approach has always been to help our clients win by providing exceptional core services while building solutions that meet their evolving needs and help solve tomorrow’s problems,” said Ms. Domier. “We are proud after many years of strong performance as a private company to now be able to create value for public shareholders by continuing to drive profitable growth for our clients and further capturing significant share of the market for omnichannel services. In addition to the unparalleled insights and relationships they bring to our business, partnering with Conyers Park strengthens our balance sheet, enabling us to continue investing in growth initiatives for the benefit of all of our stakeholders.”
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Mr. Kilts commented, “We couldn’t be more excited to be joining forces with Advantage and bringing its story to the public markets. Advantage’s clear leadership position in the mission-critical sales and marketing industry, together with unmatched scale and capabilities and a management team of the highest quality, make it an outstanding business. I have worked closely with Tanya and the team and have witnessed Advantage overcome every obstacle in its path and come out on top. The Conyers Park II team looks forward to helping Advantage execute on its future growth strategy.
“The company operates in a very large and stable end market and offers essential services and a compelling value proposition of driving sales for its clients and customers while also saving them money. This is one of the best management teams I’ve worked with, consistently investing in the right strategies to evolve with the market and grow. And the company has multiple future growth opportunities ahead.”
Conyers Park executives have deep experience in consumer goods as well as firsthand experience working with Advantage beyond Jim Kilts’ board role. “The Conyers Park team knows us well, and we believe they will be great value-added partners,” said Ms. Domier. “We also had the pleasure to work with Conyers Park CEO Dave West over many years while he was CEO of Del Monte and Big Heart Pet Brands.”
Additional Details Regarding the Transaction
Conyers Park will contribute up to $450 million of cash raised during its initial public offering and concurrent private placement in July 2019. Contingent upon and concurrently with the closing of the proposed transaction, Advantage will enter into new senior secured credit facilities, consisting of a $2.1 billion term loan facility that will be drawn at closing, and a $400 million asset-based revolving credit facility. In the event of any redemptions by Conyers Park’s stockholders in connection with the transaction, Advantage will have the option to borrow up to $100 million under the revolving credit facility or use available cash to satisfy the transaction’s minimum cash condition. Advantage’s current equity investors will also have the option to purchase up to an additional $250 million of common stock from Conyers Park to satisfy the minimum cash condition.
The Board of Directors of Conyers Park has unanimously approved the proposed transaction.
The transaction is expected to be completed as early as late October 2020, subject to approval by Conyers Park’s stockholders, the expiration of the HSR Act waiting period, the debt financing described above and other customary closing conditions.
Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC acted as financial advisor, and Latham & Watkins LLP acted as legal advisor to Advantage. Centerview Partners LLC, Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC and Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. acted as financial advisors, and Kirkland & Ellis acted as legal advisor to Conyers Park. Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC and Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC acted as private placement agents to Conyers Park. Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. and Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC acted as joint underwriters of Conyers Park’s IPO and acted as capital markets advisors to Conyers Park on this transaction. Shearman & Sterling LLP acted as private placement agent counsel.
The proposed transaction includes committed debt financing from Bank of America, Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. and Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC.
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