GREENWICH, Conn., March 10, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- Blyth, Inc. (NYSE:BTH), a leader in the home fragrance and decor industry, today announced that it intends to acquire Miles Kimball Company, a direct marketer of giftware, home decor and household convenience items, premium photo albums, frames and holiday cards. The agreement has been executed, and closing is expected in the next several weeks.
Blyth will acquire a 100% interest in Miles Kimball Company for total consideration of approximately $65 million in an all-cash transaction. The acquisition is expected to be accretive to Blyth's sales and earnings in fiscal year 2004. Miles Kimball Company's sales were approximately $120 million in fiscal year ended December 31, 2002.
Miles Kimball Company, headquartered in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, operates three divisions: Miles Kimball(r) Gifts, Exposures(r) and Holiday Cards. Miles Kimball Gifts, (1-800-546-2255 or www.mileskimball.com) offers unique, value-priced gifts, home decor, household convenience items and personalized merchandise through its catalog and Web site. Exposures (1-800-222-4947 or www.exposuresonline.com) markets a variety of archival-quality products, including picture frames and albums, organizational items and photographic cards, many of which can be personalized. The Holiday Card division (1-800-546-2255 or www.mileskimballcards.com) markets personalized holiday greeting cards. Miles Kimball Company circulates approximately 55 million catalogs annually.
Commenting on the acquisition, Robert B. Goergen, Blyth's Chairman of the Board and CEO, said, "The acquisition of Miles Kimball Company is consistent with Blyth's unique business strategy of satisfying consumer needs by offering desirable gift and home decor products through multiple channels of distribution, and allows us to expand those channels by adding a catalog and Internet business. Loyal and satisfied customers, adept management and products sold under established and respected brand names all contribute to our belief in good growth prospects for the Miles Kimball business. We are confident that Mike Muoio, President, and his experienced management team will hold their own in this challenging retail environment while positioning Miles Kimball Company for growth as the overall business climate improves."
Mr. Goergen continued, "The growth of our business, both internally and via strategic acquisitions such as Miles Kimball Company, positions Blyth as a significant global competitor in Home Expressions. By leading the way in fragrance technologies and style trends and offering a variety of trusted brands and products that satisfy multiple needs, Blyth helps people express themselves in their homes."
Michael D. Muoio, President, Miles Kimball Company, commented, "Being a member of the Blyth family of companies will offer new opportunities for Miles Kimball, particularly given Blyth's significant global sourcing and logistics capabilities, which will represent important savings. Additional technological resources will make possible additional customer service enhancements, and Miles Kimball's core competency of product personalization will bring an additional skill set to Blyth."
Miles Kimball Company was founded in 1934 by Miles and Alberta Kimball as a direct marketer of personalized Christmas cards. With $500 of borrowed funds, the company began mailing cards to targeted families in the Minneapolis area. As the business became more successful, its founders began to market various gifts and gadgets through black and white printed catalogs. The company purchased the Exposures(r) catalog title in 1992 following the appointment of Mr. Muoio to President. The company operates call centers in Las Vegas, Nevada and Oshkosh, Wisconsin and also has a 375,000 square foot state-of-the-art fulfillment and distribution facility in Oshkosh. Miles Kimball Company has approximately 275 full-time employees.
Miles Kimball was represented by Houlihan Lokey Howard & Zukin in this transaction.
Blyth, Inc. may be found on the Internet at www.blythinc.com.
Blyth, Inc., headquartered in Greenwich, Conn., USA, designs, manufactures and markets an extensive line of candles and home fragrance products including scented candles, potpourri and other fragranced products, as well as tabletop illumination products and portable heating fuel, and markets a broad range of related candle accessories. Its products are sold direct to the consumer under the PartyLite(r) brand, to retailers in the premium and specialty retail channels under the Colonial Candle of Cape Cod(r), Colonial at HOME(r), Kate's(tm) and Carolina(r) brands, in the mass retail channel under the Florasense(r), Ambria(r) and FilterMate(r) brands and to the Foodservice industry under the Sterno(r), Ambria(r) and HandyFuel(r) brand names. In Europe, its products are also sold under the Colonial, Gies, Ambria and Carolina brands. Blyth also markets a broad range of Creative Expressions products, including home decor and giftware products under the CBK(tm) brand, seasonal products under the Seasons of Cannon Falls(tm) and JMC Impact(tm) brands, and paper-related products under the Jeanmarie(r) brand.
This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements include statements concerning plans, objectives, goals, strategies, future events or performance and underlying assumptions and other statements that are other than statements of historical facts. Actual results could differ materially due to various factors, including the current slowing of the United States economy as a whole and the continuing weakness of the retail environment, the effects of our restructuring, the risk that we will be unable to maintain the Company's historic growth rate, the Company's ability to respond appropriately to changes in product demand, the risks (including foreign currency fluctuations, economic and political instability, transportation delays, difficulty in maintaining quality control, trade and foreign tax laws and others) associated with international sales and foreign products, risks associated with our ability to recruit new independent sales consultants, our dependence on key management personnel, risks associated with the sourcing of raw materials for our products, competition in terms of price and new product introductions, and other factors described in this press release, in the Company's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended October 31, 2002 and in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended January 31, 2002.