Seven years after she acquired it in bankruptcy court, Pleasant Rowland has sold MacKenzie-Childs Ltd.
The Aurora-based manufacturer of home furnishings, tableware, enamelware and furniture is now owned by a private equity firm, Twin Lakes Capital LLC. Rowland announced the sale in a press release issued Wednesday afternoon. Employees learned of the sale in the morning.
Terms of the deal, which the two sides completed Wednesday, were not disclosed.
Rowland had announced her intention to find a buyer in June 2007, saying she had accomplished her turnaround goals with the company. She acquired MacKenzie-Childs for roughly $5.5 million in 2001 when it was under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
The company now employs about 175, including 150 at its headquarters and manufacturing site in Aurora. Twin Lakes has no plans to change staff levels or move operations.
“It's absolutely our intention to continue production in Aurora and have our headquarters in Aurora,” said Lee Feldman, a Twin Lakes managing partner. “It's a great group of people. ... That's what we bought into.”
Twin Lakes, according to the press release, invests in branded consumer products, media, applied technology and business services. It has offices in Rochester and New York City. Feldman declined to name other companies in the Twin Lakes portfolio.
Richard and Victoria MacKenzie-Childs started the company in 1983. It operates on a 65-acre former dairy farm that overlooks Cayuga Lake.
The MacKenzie-Childs purchase was one of many multi-million dollar investments Rowland made in Aurora, where she attended Wells College in the 1960s. She made her fortune as the founder of the American Girl doll line, which she sold to Mattel for $700 million in 1998.
Her investments have not been welcomed by everyone in Aurora, where some local residents became disenchanted with her approach to making changes. In 2006, she had said her work in Aurora was complete and she began turning properties over to the college.
In addition to its Aurora operations, MacKenzie Childs has stores in Palm Beach and New York City. It also retails through its Web site and direct-to-consumer catalogues.
Terms of the deal, which the two sides completed Wednesday, were not disclosed.
Rowland had announced her intention to find a buyer in June 2007, saying she had accomplished her turnaround goals with the company. She acquired MacKenzie-Childs for roughly $5.5 million in 2001 when it was under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
The company now employs about 175, including 150 at its headquarters and manufacturing site in Aurora. Twin Lakes has no plans to change staff levels or move operations.
“It's absolutely our intention to continue production in Aurora and have our headquarters in Aurora,” said Lee Feldman, a Twin Lakes managing partner. “It's a great group of people. ... That's what we bought into.”
Twin Lakes, according to the press release, invests in branded consumer products, media, applied technology and business services. It has offices in Rochester and New York City. Feldman declined to name other companies in the Twin Lakes portfolio.
Richard and Victoria MacKenzie-Childs started the company in 1983. It operates on a 65-acre former dairy farm that overlooks Cayuga Lake.
The MacKenzie-Childs purchase was one of many multi-million dollar investments Rowland made in Aurora, where she attended Wells College in the 1960s. She made her fortune as the founder of the American Girl doll line, which she sold to Mattel for $700 million in 1998.
Her investments have not been welcomed by everyone in Aurora, where some local residents became disenchanted with her approach to making changes. In 2006, she had said her work in Aurora was complete and she began turning properties over to the college.
In addition to its Aurora operations, MacKenzie Childs has stores in Palm Beach and New York City. It also retails through its Web site and direct-to-consumer catalogues.
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Poster wrote on May 9, 2008 8:17 AM:
They are known world wide for their genius in new clay development and their unique vision of the world and bringing together layers and textures like no one dared before. The cost of their art is directly related to the labor intensive effort it takes to create their visions. You can't put 10 hours into something and sell it for $20.00. It's simple economics.
Endless knockoffs, for a fraction of the cost continually flow into the marketplace. Like any art, you pay more for the original. If you want "pretend" M-C art, you buy the new Pleasant Rowland products or the knockoffs. If you want original Victoria and Richard MacKenzie-Childs art, you buy the old stuff or you buy the new works, from their new company V&R Emprise. www.victoriaandrichard.com
Pleasant has money and power. She can't buy an artists vision, although she has spent many years trying to do just that at MacKenzie-Childs. Hopefully the new owners will not try to pretend to be Victoria and Richard. They have a great skilled labor force at the M-C factory and a lot of dedicated employees. They should leave the original work to the credit of the creators and move forward, doing their own thing. I hope they find their way and keep the factory open for years to come. "