Bain Capital Credit’s special situations strategy became “Bain Capital Special Situations” in Fall 2022.
Bain Capital Credit, formerly known as Sankaty Advisors, announces that affiliated funds have invested alongside T.M. Lewin’s management team to refinance the business and buy out the equity stake owned by Caird Capital. T.M. Lewin, the famous British shirtmaker founded in Jermyn Street in 1898, has 185 stores around the world. Bain Capital Credit provided mezzanine debt and equity for the transaction, with Lloyds Banking Group providing senior debt. The transaction was led by Bain Capital Credit's Middle Market Group and European retail teams.
“Bain Capital Credit has consistently demonstrated that they have a detailed understanding of both our industry and our company,” said Geoff Quinn, CEO of T.M. Lewin. “Not only will they provide us with a much more flexible capital base to support our growth, but their sector expertise will be hugely beneficial in delivering on our vision for the future which aims to put our customers and products firmly at the centre of our business.”
Bain Capital Credit's Middle Market Group actively seeks to invest upwards of $15 million in the form of debt and equity in companies with EBITDA of $10 million or greater in Europe, North America and Australia/New Zealand. Bain Capital Credit can provide senior, unitranche and mezzanine debt, as well as equity co-investments. Since its inception in 1998, the Middle Market Group has provided more than $7.5 billion in capital for over 200 transactions.
“We are delighted to be supporting the growth of T.M. Lewin, a business with great potential to expand its existing international and online presence. Its position as a UK market leader in specialist formal wear retail demonstrates the power of this historic brand and an impressive operational and financial performance during the past few years.” said David Brooks, an Executive Vice President on Bain Capital Credit's European team. “This is another example of how companies are choosing Bain Capital Credit as a partner because we can tailor financing at any level of the capital structure to meet their evolving needs and we have sector experts who understand their business and markets.”
Bain Capital Credit was advised by Proskauer Rose and PwC on the transaction. T.M. Lewin was advised by Hogan Lovells, KPMG and BDO International. The due diligence for the transaction was conducted by KPMG and Pragma Consulting.
About Bain Capital Credit
Bain Capital Credit, formerly known as Sankaty Advisors, is one of the world’s leading private managers of fixed income and credit instruments. Founded in 1998 and now managing more than $26 billion of assets, Bain Capital Credit has an integrated team of more than 230 people that enables the firm to invest up and down the capital structure and to conduct rigorous, independent analysis of thousands of corporate issuers. Bain Capital Credit invests in a wide variety of securities and investments globally, including leveraged loans, high-yield bonds, distressed and stressed debt, mezzanine debt, structured products, real estate and equities. An employee-owned private partnership, the firm has offices in Boston, New York, Chicago, London, Luxembourg, Dublin, Hong Kong and Melbourne. Bain Capital Credit is registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission and Bain Capital Credit, Ltd., is authorized and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. For more information, please visit www.baincapitalcredit.com.
Bain Capital Credit’s European team, consisting of more than 30 professionals based in London, has a successful 12-year track record of investing in European leveraged loans, high yield bonds and mezzanine capital, and currently manages investments in approximately 100 companies.
About T.M. Lewin
Founded in 1898, T.M. Lewin is a British businesswear retailer, known for its Jermyn Street heritage, invention of the first button-through shirt and affordable British style. T.M. Lewin serves customers from over 95 stores in the UK and Australia and over 90 franchise stores in the Middle East, Africa, India, South East Asia and a strong online presence. T.M. Lewin is led by Geoff Quinn, who has been with the business for 35 years and been CEO since 1993, since when he has significantly expanded the store footprint.
This press release has been updated to reflect the new business unit name, "Bain Capital Credit," which was changed from "Sankaty Advisors."
