Paris, 9 January 2018 – DIAM Group, the world leader in merchandising for luxury retail and cosmetics, today announced that it has refinanced its bank and bond debt that was arranged in September 2016 following the acquisition by Ardian, its management team and BNP Développement. Financing for the acquisition was provided by BNP Paribas, CIC, Société Générale, Banque Palatine and OFI ZenCap.
The newly-raised financing is structured around a bank debt with three tranches (Term Loan A, Term Loan B, Term Loan C) in addition to a capex line, an acquisition line and a revolving credit facility. Alongside its existing financing partners, the Group is delighted to welcome three new institutional lenders: Aviva, Allianz and Banque International à Luxembourg.
Michel Vaissaire, CEO of DIAM Group, said: “This accretive transaction for the management gives DIAM a strong financing structure to continue its growth. We have been investing heavily for several years, both at an organic level, adding two to three greenfields to our portfolio per year; and through acquisitions, three of which have taken place over the last two years. Strengthening our pool of financial partners in this high-growth environment is therefore key to reinforce our strategic agility.
With the continued support of the Ardian team, led by Arnaud Dufer, as well as the new banking pool, both supporting our strategy, we have all the elements in place to continue our development and provide our clients with the best service”.
Arnaud Dufer, Head of Expansion France at Ardian, added: “Since Ardian’s investment in the Group, DIAM has continued on its strong growth trajectory. We have supported DIAM’s management team and its CEO, Michel Vaissaire, in numerous initiatives, including the opening of new production sites in Europe, Asia and North America, and the acquisition of two companies, based in China and in France, which have provided DIAM with a portfolio of new and complementary activities. After only 15 months, the refinancing operation is a strong signal of the all the trust we all have in the company and its teams”.
ABOUT DIAM GROUP
With revenues exceeding €300m in 2017, DIAM is the world leader in merchandising solutions for the luxury retail and cosmetics segments. In the last few years, DIAM has grown through international expansion (with a presence in 25 countries) and by broadening its offer to provide better support to its clients. DIAM is a key player in the creative design, production and installation of merchandising solutions for cosmetics and luxury brands (Chanel, Clinique, Dior, Estée Lauder, Cartier, L’Oréal, Lancôme, Clarins, LVMH, Shiseido, Coty, P&G, etc.).
ABOUT ARDIAN
Ardian is a world-leading private investment house with assets of US$66bn managed or advised in Europe, North America and Asia. The company is majority-owned by its employees. It keeps entrepreneurship at its heart and focuses on delivering excellent investment performance to its global investor base.
Through its commitment to shared outcomes for all stakeholders, Ardian’s activities fuel individual, corporate and economic growth around the world.
Holding close its core values of excellence, loyalty and entrepreneurship, Ardian maintains a truly global network, with more than 480 employees working from twelve offices across Europe (Frankfurt, Jersey, London, Luxembourg, Madrid, Milan, Paris and Zurich), North America (New York, San Francisco) and Asia (Beijing, Singapore). It manages funds on behalf of 640 clients through five pillars of investment expertise: Funds of Funds, Direct Funds, Infrastructure, Real Estate and Private Debt.
Follow Ardian on Twitter @Ardian
LIST OF PARTIES INVOLVED
Ardian: Arnaud Dufer, Alexis Lavaillote, Caroline Pihan
Legal, financing and tax advisor: DLA Piper (Xavier Norlain, Matthieu Lampel, Maud Manon)
Financial advisor: Grant Thornton (Gregory Volpi, Jonathan Happi)
BNPP: Florent Launay, Guenaelle Kerever
CIC: Jérôme Salmon, Camille Laurent
Société Générale: Olivier Amicel, Stéphanie Kordonian
Banque Palatine: Hervé Rinjonneau, Alexis Nef
OFI ZenCap: François Caulry, Hervé Goigoux-Becker
Aviva: André Goncalvez, Benoit Faguer
Allianz: Damien Guichard, Alexandra Tixier
BIL: Julien Ruggeri, Bounouar Sayoud
