PE firm Advent buys majority stake in AOT
06 Aug 2012
US private equity firm Advent International yesterday agreed to buy a majority stake in AOT Bedding Super Holdings, the parent company of Serta mattress maker National Bedding and Simmons Bedding.
Although the Boston, Massachusetts-based PE firm did not disclose the financial terms of the deal, The Wall Street Journal had late last week reported that Advent is likely to buy AOT Bedding from private equity firm Ares Management and Teachers' Private Capital, the private equity arm of the Ontario (Canada) Teachers' Pension Plan, for around $3 billion, including debt (See: Advent International may buy Serta mattress maker National Bedding for $3 bn: report).
Other PE firms, Bain Capital and Berkshire Partners had also bid for the company, which was put up for sale earlier this year by its owners, the report had added.
Ares Management and the Ontario Teachers had acquired Serta in 2005, and later merged it with bankrupt Simmons Bedding Co.
National Bedding is the largest manufacturer of Serta brand mattresses and holds 27 of the 34 exclusive US Serta manufacturing licenses.
Serta was founded in 1931 by 13 mattress manufacturers who licensed the Serta name; but later it was controlled and operated as Serta International by its largest licencee, National Bedding Co.
