Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati (WSGR), a firm with offices in New York, Silicon Valley and Texas, among others recently represented Vintage Capital in its acquisition of Rent-A-Center, a leading rent-to-own outlet for phones, appliances, furniture and electronics, among other items. Vintage purchased the company for $1.36 billion, including net debt. The transaction was announced on June 18.
According to a press release, under the terms of the agreement, Rent-A-Center stockholders will receive $15.00 in cash for each share of Rent-A-Center common stock, which represents a premium of approximately 49 percent over the company’s closing stock price on Oct. 30, 2017, immediately prior to the announcement that Rent-A-Center’s board of directors initiated a process to evaluate strategic and financial alternatives focused on maximizing stockholder value.
“We have long admired Rent-A-Center and are pleased to have reached this agreement to expand our rent-to-own portfolio,” said Brian R. Kahn, Managing Member and Founder of Vintage Capital and Chairman of the Board of Members of Buddy’s Newco, LLC d/b/a Buddy’s Home Furnishings, a rent-to-own operator and franchisor, the controlling shareholder of which is Vintage Capital. “We believe that the combination of Rent-A-Center, Buddy’s and Vintage is a compelling opportunity to utilize our resources and expertise to enhance value and create a leader in the rent-to-own industry.”
The WSGR team that advised Vintage Capital included:
Corporate/M&A partners Bradley Finkelstein and Doug Schnell and associates Nikki Smith, Wendy Guo, and Peter Jung; Corporate Finance and Governance partner John Fore and associate Aaron Wax; Antitrust partner Jamillia Ferris and Chris Williams, of counsel; Employee Benefits and Compensation partner Dave Thomas and counsel Michael Montfort; Technology Transactions partner Jamie Clessuras and Barath Chari; Privacy of counsel Matthew Staples; Real Estate and Environmental partner Susan Reinstra, counsel Martin Sul, and associate Lee Cumberland; Tax partner Myra Sutanto Shen; Employment Litigation associate Matthew Gorman; and Regulatory and Compliance partner Larry Perrone.