Case Studies

— ADVISORY —

Our principals have deep experience across a wide range of sector, situational, and transactional formats in healthy, stressed and distressed situations

Client logo: Mark Andy

Year/Role: 2020/Investment Banking Advisor to Company

Situation:  Company added significant debt in 2018 just as its performance began to deteriorate; headwinds associated with the COVID-19 pandemic subsequently created liquidity issues

  • Theatine Partners stress-tested the Company’s near-term liquidity projection and multi-year financial forecast, developed capital transaction alternatives and negotiated with the Company’s noteholders to preserve liquidity in the face of an imminent payment default

  • Worked with company to successfully negotiate an uptier exchange of 84.7% of its secured notes into a new PIK security, and an amendment to its ABL facility to raise

Client logo: WiLine Networks, Inc.

Year(s)/Role: 2021-2023/Investment Banking Advisor to Company

Situation: Company in covenant and payment default due to delayed financial audits despite strong financial performance; prior refinancing efforts had failed

  • Theatine Partners advised on serial forbearances to create space for a robust and competitive refinancing process, which resulted in several actionable financing proposals

  • Successfully refinanced defaulted bank loan facility despite lacking several years of financial audits; subsequently termed out and upsized bridge financing with traditional private credit as audits filings were completed

Client logo: Accuride Corporation

Year(s)/Role: 2009-10/Investment Banking Advisor to Company

Situation: Company at risk of payment default on its outstanding senior notes due to a downturn in end markets associated with the 2008 Great Financial Crisis

  • Explored recapitalization options, primarily an out-of-court exchange offer with company noteholders, a process made more complex by the company’s public reporting status

  • Successfully negotiated a pre-arranged chapter 11 filing with the consent of all major constituencies (other than the company’s public equity); prevailed in a contested “valuation fight” against an ad hoc equity committee in bankruptcy court

Client logo: Barney's New York

Year(s)/Role: 2009-2012/Investment Banking Advisor to Company

Situation:  Company acquired by an offshore financial sponsor just prior to the Great Financial Crisis; faced significant liquidity issues associated with high acquisition leverage and a ~70% decline in EBITDA

  • Secured necessary liquidity to facilitate organic business recovery, negotiating multiple lender forbearances and amendments in the process

  • Developed novel out-of-court restructuring plan to refinance subordinated indebtedness scheduled to go “cash-pay” with support of major secured creditor

Client logo: Enron

Year(s)/Role: 2001-2004/Investment Banking Advisor to Company

Situation:  Largest bankruptcy in U.S. history prior to Lehman Brothers in 2008; company collapsed due to a series of well-reported accounting scandals, self-dealing, and related party transactions

  • Led the advisory team’s divestiture of non-core assets, approval of in-house restructuring and non-ordinary course transactions, and the creation of an international asset holding company platform (Prisma Energy), and gave expert testimony related thereto

  • Confirmed a highly complex, free-fall chapter 11 plan in just over two years despite competing creditor agendas and indecipherable intercompany relationships

Case Studies

— FIDUCIARY —

As fiduciaries we work across a rich spectrum of industries and circumstances; our independence has earned the confidence of a wide variety of principals and advisors

Crowne Plaza Hotels and Resorts logo with stylized black wave symbol.

Independent Director, President and Treasurer
August 2021 – March 2023

Times Square JV LLC and CPTS Hotel Lessee LLC:
Sole independent director of a privately-held, mixed-use single-asset real estate company housing a Crowne Plaza hotel located in Times Square, New York City.

  • hotel closed spring 2020 due to COVID; appointed through lender’s limited exercise of remedies

  • oversee various corporate, litigation and management actions and facilitate a major corporate event to address a significantly over-levered capital structure

  • various pre- and post-petition workstreams related to property management, commercial litigation, reopening the property, negotiating an RSA among disparate parties and retaining myriad professionals

  • confirmed consensual chapter 11 with UCC support  in 79 days and emerged in 93 days; DIP financing borrowings and expense budget came in well under forecast

Confidential

Independent Director and Member, Compensation and Special Committees
January 2023 – March 2024

Undisclosed: One of two independent directors appointed to a PE sponsor-owned, multi-billion-dollar facilities services company.

  • appointed in connection with a prospective significant corporate event

  • navigate a likely recapitalization through a consensual change of control transaction

  • primary focus areas included liquidity and financial resources, negotiating a consensual RSA, and related matters

  • Successfully effectuated a consensual change of control in March 2024

Confidential

Independent Director and Member, Compensation and Special Committees / January 2023 – March 2024

Undisclosed: One of two independent directors appointed to a PE sponsor-owned, multi-billion-dollar facilities services company.

  • Appointed in connection with a prospective significant corporate event

  • Navigate a likely recapitalization through a consensual change of control transaction

  • Primary focus areas included liquidity and financial resources, negotiating a consensual RSA, and related matters

  • Successfully effectuated consensual change of control in March 2024

Confidential

Independent Director / September 2020 – March 2021

Undisclosed.: Pre-restructuring role for privately-held apparel retailer, ultimately resolved out of court.

  • Over-levered retailer deeply impacted by COVID with unsustainable lease obligations

  • As a subsidiary of a global conglomerate, provide company with requisite independent transactional and governance expertise as it sought to reprofile its financial obligations, with a chapter 11 filing as a possible outcome

  • Led lease negotiation, non-core asset disposition and bankruptcy preparedness efforts

  • Successfully renegotiated flagship lease, avoiding bankruptcy – a key objective of corporate parent

Client logo: Il Mulino New York

Chairman of the Board of Managers / January 2021 – present

IM Manager Rest LLC (dba Il Mulino): Post-reorganization board manager for a high-end New York-based restaurant brand.

  • Highly-regarded restaurant chain emerging from bankruptcy with lender as owner

  • Professionalize a historically “bootstrapped” business through a difficult period (COVID-19) for restaurant businesses; optimize operations and drive strategic initiatives to maximize value

  • Resolved/ing myriad legacy issues (labor-related, lease amendments, asset-level restructurings/refinancings, changes to organizational structure, JV negotiations, litigation strategy, and organizational)

  • Company performing well; 2021 revenues exceeded 2019 (pre-COVID) levels, with year-over-year improvement sustained through 2024 in a challenging fine dining environment

Client logo: Dragonfly Holding

  • Appointed as independent manager in connection with lender’s limited exercise of remedies

  • Maximize value for stakeholders through recapitalization or sale while ensuring platform stability created by prior absentee stewardship

  • Work with various stakeholders towards a consensual resolution

  • Platform and three independent vertical sales closed April/May 2024; now working to wind down various legal entities by YE 2024

Independent Manager / August 2023 – present

Dragonfly Holding Co. LLC: Sole independent board manager of an “Amazon Aggregator” eCommerce brand manager.

Not a comprehensive list of engagements. Please contact us directly for additional detail regarding completed transactions and our prior experience.