Lenox asset auction gets winning bid from Clarion Capital

By Rebecca Melvin

New York, Feb. 27 - Clarion Capital Partners LLC won the auction for substantially all assets of Lenox Group Inc. after the bidding for those assets was reopened Wednesday by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York, according to an attorney.

The transaction is valued at about $100 million, including cash and assumption of certain Lenox liabilities, but the specific sale price wasn't released.

The court reopened bidding following litigation brought by Clarion regarding an auction scheduled to be held Feb. 11 when Lenox determined Clarion's bid was unqualified.

The transaction is expected to close in March.

At that time, Peter Cameron, previously the chief executive of Waterford Wedgwood plc and All-Clad Metalcrafters LLC, will become the new chief executive of Lenox.

"We are delighted to have the opportunity to invest in this truly iconic American brand," Clarion founder and managing partner Marc Utay said in the release.

Miller Buckfire & Co. is acting as investment banker and financial adviser to the acquisition group, and Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP is providing legal counsel.

Eden Prairie, Minn.-based Lenox filed for bankruptcy on Nov. 23. Its Chapter 11 case number is 08-14679.

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