Case Study for Sell-side Techniques to Use in an Asset Sale with Multiple Bidders
Written by Kenneth Mann

This case study discusses Wellington Leisure Products Inc. (WPL) (seller), a consumer products manufacturer with diverse product lines: cordage (rope), both commercial and retail; PDFs - life vests; pool toys; patio furniture (wood furniture, umbrellas, and replacement cushions); and hunting products (deer hunting scents/lures). The seller was operating in chapter 11, run by a turnaround manager who was brought in after fraud was alleged. The seller had no secured debt, and about $65 million in unsecured debt, about $40 million of which was with banks. Annual sales were about $120 million. Equity Partners (EPI) was retained by the debtor to sell various divisions, including the cordage division. The banks, which made up most of the unsecured creditors’ committee, were willing to give us about 90 days to sell the business as a going concern before pulling the plug. They were funding significant losses and due to seasonality, the losses would get much worse about 120 days out.
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ABI Asset Sales Committee Meeting at WLC Covers Intellectual Property Issues

The Asset Sales Committee had a very lively session at the 15th Annual Winter Leadership Conference held on Dec. 4-6, 2003 in beautiful La Quinta, Calif. The first half of the session was devoted to a discussion of intellectual property issues in bankruptcy asset sales. The discussion was led by committee co-chairs S. David Peress (The Ozer Group; Needham, Mass.) and John G. Loughnane (Gadsby Hannah LLP; Boston, Mass.). David brought his experience from both private practice and as managing director and general counsel for Ozer while John lent his experience from a decade of bankruptcy practice and his recently concluded two year in-house experience with a large international publicly traded software company.
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2004 ASM to Cover Asset Sales, Many Other Topics

Don’t miss this year’s Annual Spring Meeting, April 15-18 in Washington, D.C.! The Asset Sales Committee will present "Current Developments in Asset Sales: Sell-side Strategies, Designation Rights, Tax Issues and Liquidating Plans." Rick Tilton will lead the discussion.

The 2004 program will cover a wide variety of insolvency topics and feature 19.5 hours of CLE credit. The meeting will also feature guest speakers Tim Russert (“Meet the Press”) and Robert Hormats (Goldman Sachs), a Final Night Gala Dinner with Blood, Sweat & Tears and MUCH more. Register online today!