Blue Martini Software to Become a Golden Gate Capital Portfolio Company
Blue Martini Software Stockholders to Receive $4.00 Per Share in Cash
SAN MATEO, Calif., (03/01/2005)--Blue Martini Software, Inc. (NASDAQ: BLUE), a leading provider of sales optimization systems and Multi-Channel Holdings, Inc., a privately-held Golden Gate Capital portfolio company, today announced that they had entered into a definitive merger agreement for Blue Martini to be acquired in an all-cash transaction valued at $4.00 per share. The total transaction value is approximately $54 million. The purchase price represents a premium of approximately 63% over the closing price of Blue Martini common stock on February 28, 2005, the last day before the announcement of the proposed transaction. Multi-Channel Holdings is the parent entity of Ecometry Corporation (www.ecometry.com), a leading multi-channel retail software vendor.
Golden Gate Capital, the principal investor in Multi-Channel Holdings, is a San Francisco-based private equity investment firm with approximately $2.6 billion of capital under management. Golden Gate Capital has acquired and built twenty-five software companies in the last four years.
The merger agreement has been approved by the board of directors of each of Blue Martini and Multi-Channel Holdings. The transaction is subject to approval by the holders of a majority in interest of Blue Martini’s outstanding common stock. Certain directors and officers of Blue Martini who own in the aggregate approximately 28% of Blue Martini’s outstanding shares have agreed to vote in favor of the transaction. The transaction is also subject to customary regulatory approvals and other closing conditions and is expected to close in the second quarter of 2005.
Monte Zweben, Chairman and CEO of Blue Martini stated, "This transaction represents an opportunity for our stockholders to realize a cash value at a significant premium to the recent trading range of our stock."
"Golden Gate Capital will provide Blue Martini a sound financial foundation and actively support Blue Martini’s customer base and growth initiatives going forward" stated David Dominik, a managing director with Golden Gate Capital. "Our strategy is to distribute Blue Martini’s leading multi-channel solutions across our portfolio of vertically-focused companies, specifically in the areas of retail, manufacturing and distribution."
Ecometry, also held by Multi-Channel Holdings, boasts a client base of nearly 300 customers, including many of the world’s most prominent retailers, including Nordstrom, Urban Outfitters, Coach, Brookstone, Nine West and Lego. Blue Martini’s retail customer base includes Saks, Kohl’s, Debenhams, Gymboree, Men’s Wearhouse, Sainsbury’s and Harrah’s. John Marrah, CEO of Ecometry, commented, "Our plan is to tightly integrate Blue Martini’s analytics, clienteling, relationship marketing, configuration, and e-commerce solutions into our order management and fulfillment solutions. We expect the combined product portfolio to dramatically enhance the value we provide to our respective customer bases and the retailing vertical in general."
"The distribution of Blue Martini’s products into the manufacturing, warehousing, and distribution vertical markets upon the closing of the transaction will be centered around Infor Global Solutions (www.infor.com), a Golden Gate Capital portfolio company and provider of enterprise business solutions to the discrete manufacturing and distribution industries worldwide," said Ken Walters, President of Infor. "Like Ecometry, we expect our customer base to significantly benefit from the distribution of Blue Martini’s high quality e-commerce, analytics, relationship marketing, configuration, and guided selling applications into our markets. We plan to significantly invest in Blue Martini’s platform and products, tailoring their solutions to meet the needs of our customers."
About Blue Martini
Blue Martini is a leading provider of sales optimization systems. Its software proactively guides sales people, partners, and customers through sales interactions, helping them to sell more. Over 170 companies worldwide including Carrefour, DuPont, Harley-Davidson, Kohl’s, Mitsubishi, Panasonic, Saks Fifth Avenue, and Sprint have licensed Blue Martini’s sales optimization systems to sell more effectively. Blue Martini is headquartered in San Mateo, California and can be reached at 650-356-4000 or www.bluemartini.com.
About Golden Gate Capital
Golden Gate Capital (www.goldengatecap.com) is a San Francisco-based private equity investment firm with approximately $2.6 billion of capital under management. Golden Gate Capital is dedicated to partnering with world-class management teams to invest in change-intensive, growth businesses. It targets investments of up to $100 million in situations where there is a demonstrable opportunity to significantly enhance a company’s value. The principals of Golden Gate Capital have a long and successful history of investing with management partners across a wide range of industries and transaction types, and in particular, have been very active in the enterprise software market. Blue Martini represents the fifth software acquisition that Golden Gate Capital has announced within the last two years.
About Ecometry
Ecometry is the premier provider of customer focused software solutions for direct and multi-channel commerce. Its flagship product, Ecometry Commerce Suite, is a high volume suite of business applications designed to completely automate front-end and back-end operations for multi-channel retailers. Headquartered in Delray Beach, Florida, Ecometry`s client roster of more than 380 companies includes industry leaders such as Nordstrom, Time Life, Brookstone, Miles Kimball, Hickory Farms, Levenger, Delia`s, Overton`s, Nine West, Coldwater Creek, Coach, Ross-Simons and Urban Outfitters.
Contact:
Charlene Smith
Media Relations
Phone: 561-454-4233
Fax: 561-454-4803
Email: csmith@ecometry.com
Susan Magi
Marketing
Phone: 561-454-4121
Fax: 561-454-4803
Email: smagi@ecometry.com
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