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Chicago – June 24, 2011; City Capital Advisors, a results-oriented investment banking firm serving the middle market, announced today that it advised the owners of Zenith Cutter Co. in the sale of the company to the Fisher Barton Group, a transaction led by Tim Coleman and Matt Phillips, both City Capital Managing Directors.
Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Headquartered in Rockford, Illinois, Zenith Cutter Co. provides high quality industrial replacement blades and accessories to a diverse range of end markets including corrugated, plastics, recycling, converting, textile and building materials. Zenith Cutter was founded in 1923 by Richard Blazer and, under the leadership of his son, Cedric Blazer, gained national and international recognition as the premier manufacturer and marketer of high quality after-market industrial blades. The company currently employs over 375 people with operations in Loves Park, Illinois and Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Cedric Blazer led the company for 50 years until his death in 2008. “Cedric Blazer’s desire was to find an acquirer for Zenith Cutter that would maintain the level of excellence at the company and, importantly, ensure that Zenith Cutter’s operations in Loves Park outside of Rockford would remain in place,” said Jim Keeling, a partner at Hinshaw & Culbertson and an advisor to Cedric Blazer and his estate. “We feel that with Fisher Barton we have found the right company to do that.” Fisher Barton, Inc., a leading provider of lawn mower blades, is a family owned company headquartered in Watertown, Wisconsin and is well positioned to continue Zenith Cutter’s operational excellence and record of growth and maintain Cedric Blazer’s legacy. John Mink, Interim President of Zenith Cutter, said, “We have been working with Tim Coleman and Matt Phillips for over two years preparing for a sale and then executing this transaction, and they have been very helpful in meeting the objectives set forth by Cedric Blazer before he died.”
About Zenith Cutter Co.
Zenith Cutter is a leading global manufacturer and supplier of high quality industrial replacement knives and blades crafted from the finest grade steel and machined to exacting tolerances. More information on Zenith Cutter is available online at www.zenithcutter.com.
About Fisher Barton Group
Founded in 1973, Fisher-Barton is the largest OEM supplier of lawn-mower blades and agricultural knives in the world. The Fisher-Barton Group of independent companies leverage their materials expertise and world leading process innovations to manufacture high value components for a variety of markets including agricultural equipment, converting equipment, outdoor power equipment, medical device, recycling equipment and solar power. Business unit products consist of industrial knives and accessories, lawn mower blades, agricultural knives, power transmission components, stampings, thermal spray coatings, and heat treated weldments. More information on Fisher Barton is available online at www.fisher-barton.com.
About City Capital Advisors
City Capital, a FINRA registered broker-dealer, is a results oriented investment and merchant banking advisory firm. Client engagements are managed exclusively by experienced senior bankers who deliver business owners optimal performance in capitalizing on the value of their companies and meeting their objectives as shareholders. City Capital’s professionals have successfully advised clients on investment banking transactions totaling in excess of $60 billion.