Please note that Red Hawk is a professional firm providing liquidity to the middle market through private investment banking and hands on restructuring (“keeping the good parts of a business and leaving behind the bad”) and performance improvement. We realize that our success is solely dependent on that of our Clients and we sincerely thank them for their efforts in the last year and for their confidence in us. Some highlights of our firm’s work in 2009;
David Brown led two significant restructurings and turnarounds during the year. One turnaround was of a world market leading rubber products manufacturer. EBITDA improved from annualized negative 20% to above 10% within 6 months. Unsecured debt was compromised over 6 years with no interest paid.
The second turnaround continues for a leading metal processing company with multiple plants. The major issue that has been overcome is the 50% drop in sales from ’08 to ’09. Sales are now recovering.
David also spent considerable effort in ’09 on two buy-side engagements for private equity funds searching for value investment opportunities in the lower/middle market. Those engagements are ongoing into 2010.
Ron Caporossi led two major engagements including a very successful Six Sigma based performance improvement effort for a publicly held polymer manufacturer. The second project involved acting as the effective non-judicial receiver of two manufacturing plants for a large regional bank. The latter project continues in 2010.
Brad Eldridge, Director, led numerous valuations including that of a large casino, and a variety of other businesses including a law firm.
Sam Ahmad, Director, worked with David on the turnaround of the rubber products manufacturer. Sam played a critical role in changing the recipe and process used to reduce costs and bring the operation into control. He spent much of the remainder of his year in China, helping his Client, a specialty chemical maker, market and sell product to Chinese tire companies. Partly as a result of Sam’s efforts, China is now the world’s largest producer of tires and coincidentally, purchased 30% more cars (more than 13 million) than the US did in ’09.
William Sinn, Advisory Director, also spent most of the year in or traveling to/from China while representing American companies developing markets there for their products.
Thank you to our Clients and to our referral sources.