Mergers & Acquisitions

Men's Wearhouse rejected Jos. A. Bank Clothiers latest effort to acquire it, denying the retailer's request to review nonpublic company information. The board of Houston-based Men's Wearhouse decided that providing such access isn't in its shareholders’ best interest, the company announced Monday. It rejected Jos. A. Bank's $2.3 billion acquisition offer in October, saying it undervalued the men's apparel chain.

The top job at a combined Office Depot and OfficeMax won't belong to Neil Austrian or Ravi Saligram, but neither office-supply company chief executive will go away empty-handed. If the merger closes as expected, each will collect millions as they exit their respective companies and a new CEO is appointed. Austrian, who is retiring from Office Depot, will get $15 million to $16 million in a "golden parachute," depending on the stock price at closing. OfficeMax's Saligram is expected to reap about $13.5 million, said Aaron Boyd, director of governance research at Equilar, an executive compensation data firm.

CVSL, a direct-selling company run by Mary Kay Inc.'s former chairman, has offered to buy Blyth Inc. for about $268 million, two people with knowledge of the matter said. CVSL offered to pay $16.75 a share for Blyth, which sells candles, fragrances and ViSalus weight-loss products, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the information is private. The offer, which was extended last week, could be made public by CVSL as soon as today, one of the people said. Blyth rose 21 percent to close at yesterday, giving it a market value of $248.2 million.

Ares Management and Canadian Pension Plan Investment Board have completed their $6 billion purchase of luxury retailer Neiman Marcus. The transaction ends control of the luxury retailer by private equity firms TPG Capital and Warburg Pincus. They bought the company for $5.1 billion in 2005 during booming economic times, and just before a global economic crisis. Neiman Marcus, founded in 1907 by Herbert Marcus Sr., his sister Carrie Marcus and her husband A.L Neiman, has had a series of owners during its rich history. 

Men's Wearhouse is pursuing a possible purchase of dress-shoe maker Allen Edmonds, according to people familiar with the matter — and Jos. A. Bank Clothiers has a vested interest in the outcome. Such a deal could complicate Jos. A. Bank's own unsolicited — and spurned — bid for Men's Wearhouse. In order to pull off its cash bid for Men's Wearhouse, an offer valued at $2.3 billion, Jos. A. Bank would need to raise a significant amount of debt. 

Advance Auto Parts will become the largest auto-parts retailer in North America with a $2.04 billion cash deal to buy Carquest Auto Parts’ parent company General Parts International Inc. The combined company will have annual sales of $9.2 billion, pushing it just past Memphis, Tenn.-based AutoZone, which reported adjusted sales of roughly $9 billion for the fiscal year ended Aug. 31.

Men's Wearhouse rejected an unsolicited $2.3 billion takeover bid by Jos. A. Bank Clothiers on Wednesday, calling the proposed deal "highly opportunistic" and likely to draw antitrust scrutiny. Jos. A. Bank proposed paying $48 a share in cash for Men's Wearhouse, 36 percent above its closing stock price on Tuesday. But the Men's Wearhouse board said the bid undervalued the company and wasn't in the best interests of shareholders.

Staples bought e-commerce software startup Runa, looking to use the San Mateo, Calif., company's offerings to personalize its online store. "With Runa, we're adding technology to better serve our customers with personalized items, offers and delivery estimates, all in real time," said Staples Chief Executive Ronald Sargent. "Runa will allow us to tap into the wealth of engineering and e-commerce expertise in the Silicon Valley area."

The owners of the Neiman Marcus chain are near a deal to sell the luxury retailer to a group led by Ares Management and a Canadian pension plan for about $6 billion, a person briefed on the matter said on Sunday. A deal between the Ares-led group and Neiman's primary owners, Warburg Pincus and TPG Capital, could be announced as soon as this week, this person added, cautioning that talks are ongoing and could still fall apart.

Jarden Corp, known for its Mr. Coffee products, agreed to buy candle maker Yankee Candle Co Inc. for $1.75 billion after private equity owner Madison Dearborn Partners failed to sell for a higher price earlier this year. The acquisition of Yankee Candle, the largest scented candle company in the United States, will bolster Jarden's branded consumables division.