Griffin Advises Western Protective Solutions, a Private Equity Portfolio Company, on the Company’s Article 9 Sale to Spring Capital Group

Company Overview

Western Protective Solutions and affiliates (“WPS” or the “Company”) was founded in 1988 and is a leading provider of protective environments and personal protective equipment for mission-critical environments and individuals across six distinct brands. The Company provides deployable shelter solutions for the most demanding environments through its Western Shelter division and the highest quality protective clothing for firefighters through its CrewBoss division. The Company is headquartered in Eugene, OR, and deploys its products around the world to over 5,000 customers in more than 70 countries.

Situation

After years of successfully growing the business organically and through strategic M&A, and after its second successful private equity transaction, the Company began to experience significant market headwinds. These headwinds, including a shift in the strategic spending priorities of the U.S. Department of Defense and other government agencies, and challenges with international raw material suppliers, began to place a strain on the cashflow and liquidity of the Company, challenged the Company’s ability to convert its backlog and ultimately resulted in the Company’s failure to meet its covenants with lenders. Due to these unforeseen challenges, the Company began to explore strategic alternatives.

Solution

WPS engaged Griffin Financial Group as its exclusive investment banker to advise on potential alternatives for the Company. Griffin proposed several strategic and structural options for the Company, including the sale of substantially all of the assets of the Company through Article 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code. After generating multiple proposals for the acquisitions of the assets of the Company, WPS ultimately selected to partner with Spring Capital Group (“Spring”), a diversified private investment company headquartered in Eugene, OR. The transaction allowed Spring to acquire substantially all of the assets of the business and continue operating the business with minimal disruption to employees or customers.

For more information on this transaction, contact Thomas G. Whalen, Head of Special Situations at 610.205.6115, or  Stephen J. Meehan, Director, at 610.205.6112.