BETHESDA, Md., July 27 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- American CapitalStrategies Ltd. (Nasdaq: ACAS) announced today that it has arranged,together with UBS Securities LLC, a $710 million committed financingpackage for Appleseed's Brands, the largest multi-channel marketer ofprivate label apparel for men and women aged 55 and over. The investmentsupports Appleseed's Brands' recent acquisitions and the refinancing ofexisting debt. American Capital is serving as Joint Lead Arranger andAdministrative Agent for the facilities and has funded $480 million in arevolving credit facility, first and second lien loans and junior notes atclosing. UBS is serving as Joint Lead arranger for the facilities and hasfunded $230 million in a revolving credit facility and first lien loans.Following the syndication of the first lien facilities, American Capitalwill hold the majority of the $200 million second lien facilities and $50million in junior notes. Golden Gate Capital is the equity sponsor. "We are delighted to be leading this transaction as we continue tosupport the growth of Golden Gate Capital's catalog portfolio," said DarinWinn, American Capital Regional Managing Director. "We have now partneredwith Golden Gate seven times over 18 months in highly successfulcollaborations. They have again chosen us as their partner from anintensely competitive field due to our deep understanding of the Company'sbusiness, ability to syndicate the first lien facilities post-closing andto hold the second lien facility. " American Capital has invested directly and through its funds undermanagement over $11 billion in the last twelve months, over $7 billion yearto date and approximately $990 million quarter to date. Not including fundsunder management, American Capital has invested over $8 billion in the lasttwelve months, approximately $5.4 billion year to date and approximately$800 million quarter to date. For more information about American Capital'sportfolio, go to http://www.acas.com/our_portfolio/our_portfolio.html. "Golden Gate Capital has established an unparalleled track record ofachieving significant operational improvements across its rapidly growingand diverse multi-channel marketing portfolio," said Natasha Volyanskaya,American Capital Principal. "Led by a world-class management team,Appleseed's Brands has established itself as the leading multi-channelmarketer of apparel for the aging baby boomer generation -- thefastest-growing U.S. demographic." Appleseed's Brands, the largest direct marketer of private labelapparel for men and women aged 55 and over in the U.S., was formed in 2005when Golden Gate Capital bought Johnny Appleseed's and The TOG Shop. During2005, the Company also purchased Draper's and Damon's and then acquiredNorm Thompson Outfitters and Haband the following year. Appleseed's manageseight catalogs, each targeting a distinct profile of mature women andtogether providing merchandise across the entire price-point spectrum.Appleseed's uses a combination of catalogues, letter mailings and theInternet for direct marketing. The Company is headquartered in Beverly, MA. "We selected American Capital as our financing partner once again dueto their attractive and flexible financing structure, ability to holdjunior debt tranches and high level of professionalism," said JoshuaOlshansky, Golden Gate Capital Principal. "American Capital has played acritical role in facilitating our growth strategy within the multi-channelmarketing industry and we are pleased with their continued commitment andour growing partnership." ABOUT AMERICAN CAPITAL American Capital is the only alternative asset management company thatis a member of the S&P 500. With $15(1) billion in assets under management,American Capital is the largest U.S. publicly traded private equity fundand one of the largest publicly traded alternative asset managers. AmericanCapital, both directly and through its global asset management business, isan investor in management and employee buyouts, private equity buyouts, andearly stage and mature private and public companies. American Capitalprovides senior debt, mezzanine debt and equity to fund growth,acquisitions, recapitalizations and securitizations. American Capital andits affiliates invest from $5 million to $800 million per company in NorthAmerica and 5 million euro to 500 million euro per company in Europe. As of June 30, 2007, American Capital shareholders have enjoyed a totalreturn of 578% since the Company's August 1997 IPO -- an annualized returnof 22% assuming reinvestment of dividends. American Capital has paid atotal of $1.7 billion in dividends and paid $24.24 dividends per sharesince IPO at $15 per share. Companies interested in learning more about American Capital's flexiblefinancing should contact Mark Opel, Senior Vice President, BusinessDevelopment, at (800) 248-9340, or visit http://www.AmericanCapital.com orhttp://www.EuropeanCapital.com . ABOUT GOLDEN GATE CAPITAL Golden Gate Capital is a San Francisco-based private equity investmentfirm with approximately $3.4 billion of capital under management. Inaddition to Appleseed Brands, American Capital has invested with GoldenGate in six other portfolio companies, including Inovis International Inc.,a leading provider of business-to-business (B2B) software and services;Aspect Software Inc., the leading provider of contact center softwaresolutions for businesses worldwide; Appleseed's Inc. and The Tog Shop, theleading direct marketers of specialty apparel; Haband Inc., one ofAmerica's oldest direct mail-order houses; and Venus Swimwear Inc., aleading direct marketer of women's swimwear and sportswear. Performance data quoted above represents past performance of AmericanCapital. Past performance does not guarantee future results and theinvestment return and principal value of an investment in American Capitalwill likely fluctuate. Consequently, an investor's shares, when sold, maybe worth more or less than their original cost. Additionally, AmericanCapital's current performance may be lower or higher than the performancedata quoted above. This press release contains forward-looking statements. The statementsregarding expected results of American Capital Strategies are subject tovarious factors and uncertainties, including the uncertainties associatedwith the timing of transaction closings, changes in interest rates,availability of transactions, changes in regional, national orinternational economic conditions, or changes in the conditions of theindustries in which American Capital has made investments. (1) Includes internally and externally managed assets at fair value asof 3/31/07, including our investments in externally managed funds, plusinvestments at cost through 6/30/07 and less repayments through 6/30/07.
