GLM on the block

Home Textiles Today Staff -- Home Textiles Today, 6/13/2011 2:37:08 PM

London and White Plains, N.Y. - George Little Management is up for sale by its parent company The Daily Mail & General Trust. GLM is the company's U.S. tradeshow arm and produces 15 markets, including the New York International Gift Fair and National Stationery Show. Estimates of the businesses' valuation in the British press range from $200-$240 million.

"The strategic review of GLM follows the conclusion that there is limited opportunity to leverage the GLM assets across the wider DMGT group," DMG said in a statement. "And that we should focus our events activities onto fewer areas with exceptional opportunities."

GLM president Alan Steel told HTT sister publication Gifts & Decorative Accessories, "We cannot go beyond the DMG statement, but will confirm that we are in the second round of discussions with companies. In the meantime it is business as usual and this has no impact on ongoing GLM activities."

DMG appointed investment bank Jordan Edmiston to handle the sale, which has reached second-round bids according to the U.K.'s Guardian newspaper. According to the Guardian, the initial information memoranda was sent to companies including Reed Elsevier, UBM and Informa. Potential buyers include private equity firms as well as trade players.

DMG acquired its first 25 percent stake in GLM in 2000 for about $70 million; raised its stake to 49 percent at the beginning of 2007 for another $21 million, and bought the remaining 51 percent for $155 millon, also in 2007.

According to the Financial Times, GLM is expected to generate $71 million in revenue and $26 million in pre-tax profits this year.