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Home > BizTimes Daily > Archives > February 13, 2007
Baird equity group acquires competing manufacturers
Published February 13, 2007 - BizTimes Daily
Baird Capital Partners (BCP), the private equity affiliate of Milwaukee-based Robert W. Baird & Co. Inc., has acquired two of the leading suppliers of outdoor wood play sets.
With the acquisitions, Backyard Adventures Inc. of Amarillo, Texas, and Leisure Time Products Inc. of Pittsburg, Kan., will operate as separate subsidiaries of Backyard Leisure Holdings Inc.
Both companies supply ready-to-assemble wood play sets to the mass market, warehouse club and home improvement channels and custom high-end wood play sets to the specialty dealer network.
Ron Scripsick, chief executive officer of Leisure Time, said the partnership will help both companies.
"Our businesses are complementary. While Leisure Time has a strong commitment to providing the most innovative and high quality products to the mass retail channel, Backyard's focus is on providing novel and fresh ideas to the specialty dealer channel."
Charlie Sammann, CEO of Backyard Adventures, said, "We will leverage the strengths of our two organizations to service our customers more efficiently and effectively."
Scripsick will serve as CEO of the combined company, and Sammann will be executive vice president of marketing and product development. Both will be members of the company's board of directors.
"These two companies have long respected and admired each other and will now have the opportunity to work together to provide better products to their customers," said Gordan Pan, a partner at BCP.
BCP specializes in investing in the manufactured products and business services sectors. In addition to providing capital, BCP brings operating resources to its portfolio companies to improve and grow the businesses. For more information on BCP, including its operations in China, visit www.BairdCapitalPartners.com.
