Befitting the pandemic year, 2020 recorded only modest merger activity, as most potential buyers focused on preserving liquidity over acquisitions. In the end, the year was as notable for what didn’t happen as what did. Cengage and McGraw Hill called off what would have been the year’s biggest merger after running into resistance from the Department of Justice and other regulators. (Both are left with significant debt to pay down.) Barnes & Noble Education spent all year busily not getting acquired: They explored “strategic” options for months and concluded that the company was doing fine on its own — which […]
Finance
People, Etc.
Obituaries National Book Award winner Barry Lopez, 75, died Christmas Day following a lengthy battle with prostate cancer. Publishing veteran Roland Elgey, 65, died recently of colorectal cancer. He was 65 years old. His 40 years in publishing included serving as president of Que Computer Publishing and svp of sales at Que/Sams, Hungry Minds. Later in his career he worked in publishing services, most recently as vp for business development at Integra Software Services. Biographer Scott Donaldson, 92, died on December 1 of lung cancer. Poet Jean Valentine, 86, whose collection Door in the Mountain, won the 2004 National Book Award, […]
Struggling Barnes & Noble Education Gets $15 Million Investment from Sports Merchandiser
Barnes & Noble Education got a lift from news of a modest $15 million investment from sports team retailer Fanatics (and their brick-and-mortar subsidiary that sells hats and other merch, Lids). The investors will receive 2.3 million shares in BNED, bought at the far-above-market price of $6.50 a share. The parties intend to create a “long-term strategic omnichannel merchandising partnership” (the reliance on “omnichannel” to make it sound important is a warning on its own). While BNED has been touting their growing expertise in digital and ecommerce, now they proclaim that Fanatics is the key to “bring[ing] a best-of-breed retail […]
Briefs
Riky Stock will join North South Books as managing director on January 1. She will focus on “strengthening transatlantic ties to the company’s head office in Zurich, Switzerland and developing a more international approach to marketing and communications.” Stock was head of the German Book Office in New York and represented the Frankfurt Book Fair in the US. (That office was recently closed.) One of the year’s unanswered questions has been what France’s Vivendi — and controlling owner Vincent Bolloré — wants from its sizable 27 percent stage in Lagardere. Reuters suggests the battle for control of the company may […]
McGraw Hill Announces Plan to Refinance Its Substantial Debt
McGraw Hill has announced it had entered into a transaction support agreement that would extend its debt maturity through late 2024. Its revolving credit facility would also be extended, to November 2023. “The Transaction will address upcoming maturities and reduce First Lien leverage without materially increasing total leverage or cash interest expense,” according to a company report. The refinancing plan still requires additional approvals from first lien term loan holders. The company’s annual report, released in June, noted “substantial indebtedness” as a risk factor, “restrict[ing] our ability to react to changes in the economy or our industry and expos[ing] us […]
People, Etc.
John le Carré, the pen name of David Cornwell, 89, who wrote The Spy Who Came in From the Cold, A Perfect Spy, Tinker, Tailer, Solidier Spy, and many more, died of pneumonia December 12, in Cornwall, England. Johnny Geller, his longtime agent at Curtis Brown UK, said in an announcement on Sunday night, “John le Carré was an undisputed giant of English literature. He defined the Cold War era and fearlessly spoke truth to power in the decades that followed.” Brian Tart, president & publisher of Viking Penguin, said, “It has been an honor to be John le Carré’s […]