OpenGate Capital General Information. It bought Gabriel Ride Control, a shock absorber maker losing $20 million a year, returned it to profitability and preserved 1,400 jobs before selling it in 2012. OpenGate Capital is a global private equity firm headquartered in Los Angeles, California and Paris, France that focuses on the acquisition and optimization of underperforming businesses in the lower middle market throughout North America and Europe. We are proud to have a history of successfully turning around these types of businesses, Fahn added. OpenGate is perhaps best known for its 2008 purchase of the print version of TV Guide for a nominal price plus assumed debt. [30][31][32], Nikou sits on the Board of YELLOW, the non-profit organization founded by Pharrell Williams. Industry: Investment & Asset Management. [16], In 2012, through the firm's legacy, pre-fund investment process, OpenGate Capital acquired the Latin American operations of Getronics from the Dutch conglomerate, KPN. This May Day, let's show solidarity https://t.co/4v7zeBzAiz, . [26], Prior to raising its first institutional fund, OpenGate also acquired the Waukesha, Wisconsin plant and brand rights to Golden Guernsey Dairy as the result of an antitrust divestment of Dean Foods, which was required to sell the plant to purchase GGD's other plants in the state. Fusion employees received 60 days notice in July and stayed on until the mill closed in September. June 18, 10:39 a.m.: An earlier version of this article and an accompanying photo caption reported that PennySaver workers were suing OpenGate Capital and its managing partner, Andrew Nikou. Type: Company - Private. [1] The firm is focused on the acquisition of lower to middle market businesses that are often privately owned, or non-core divisions of larger companies located around the world. Kasoff, making the first extended comments on behalf of PennySaver since its closure, said the default was technical and that the company was paying down the loan. Vice President. "Meet The Private Equity CEO Who's In Talks For His Own Reality Show," Julia La Roche, Business Insider, 8-16-2011. Above, workers attend a May 26 meeting. Andrew Nikou is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of OpenGate Capital, a Los Angeles-based firm with offices in Paris, France. Capital One spokesman Michael Bulger said: Withdrawing funding is a last resort. Please check your spam or junk folder just in case To date, OpenGate has laid off 678 California workers from the Pennysaver classified ad magazine, 100 Wisconsin workers at its Golden Guernsey dairy plant, 140 employees of the Connecticut boxboard company Fusion Paperboard, and nearly 200 employees in Texas, Arkansas, and Wisconsin, who worked for Hamilton Scientific, an OpenGate-owned laboratory furniture company. Confronted with this looming loss, Hufcor employees, Janesville residents and CWA union organizers have rallied against OpenGates greedy and exploitative practices. These people have no idea what theyre in for, said Joanna Storm, whose husband, Robert, was abruptly laid off from OpenGate-owned Golden Guernsey Dairy in Waukesha, Wis., after working there 19 years. Newkirks lawyer, Jonathan Harris, claims Newkirk is no more than a victim just one of many duped by con man Darden Jr. At least two civil suits were filed by lenders who forked over money because they thought they were lending it to Darden Sr. only to learn otherwise when it was too late. in Texas, Arkansas, and Wisconsin, who worked for the laboratory furniture company Hamilton Scientific. But OpenGate never got a dime after it lent the cash as the alleged fraud was uncovered. He said that cost cuts and other moves had pushed PennySaver back toward profitability by May and the company was nearing the end of negotiations to refinance the line of credit or sell the company when Capital One stopped returning the companys calls. in Janesville, Wisconsin awoke to a nightmare. The allegations are often complex, and the plaintiffs must prove that the defendant violated securities . We need a new push to pass this law. We need to take legislative action in Congress to rip up the predatory playbook that these private equity firms use to leave workers with nothing but pink slips and lost livelihoods, Senator Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, , the first major effort to reform the private equity sector, in the last Congress. Last year, an OpenGate portfolio company called Fusion Paperboard in Sprague, Conn., shut down, eliminating 145 jobs and defaulting on the $1.8-million balance of a state-subsidized loan, according to the state Department of Economic and Community Development. It also said employees sought help from Thermo Fisher to address the cartel activity, but that security upgrade proposals were not implemented. Acquiring and creating transformative value in the lowertomiddle market across North America and Europe. If we wanted the employees to be paid, we had to immediately terminate all the employees other than those that were needed to liquidate, Kasoff said. And in 2010, OpenGate acquired Brazilian-based Philips Business Communications, since renamed Sopho which was merged into Getronics LATAM, and Finland-based KotkaMills, a laminating paper and wood business. Description. Former employees of other OpenGate Capital portfolio companies have similar stories of hardship, and some warn that the ex-PennySaver employees are up against serious challenges. But Pawluk said things deteriorated soon after OpenGate Capital acquired Hufcor, a family-owned company founded in Janesville 120 years ago. This is ClassAction.org's current list of open lawsuits and investigations. OpenGate Capital is a global private equity firm specializing in the acquisition and operation of businesses to create new value through operational improvements, innovation, and growth . This story has been shared 673,260 times. While OpenGate was in negotiations to buy the business from Thermo Fisher, armed militants took cover in the Reynosa buildings cafeteria while fleeing their rivals, according to OpenGates lawsuit. ), Concertgoer lets out a loud full body orgasm while L.A. Phil plays Tchaikovskys 5th, 8 best interview questions to land a top job, Bank rates are up. OpenGate said PennySaver had to be closed because Capital One unexpectedly pulled its line of credit at the last minute. OpenGate notes that its business model is to take chances on faltering companies, and that carries inherent risks. Generating long-term value Similarly, employees at Golden Guernsey learned the company was closing when they showed up to work only to find the doors locked. OpenGate Capital, the private equity firm that owns their employer, Hufcor, announced it was moving their plant out of Janesville taking those workers jobs and livelihoods with it. See here for a complete list of exchanges and delays. Why is Frank McCourt really pushing it? In 2001, Nikou began his career in private equity at Platinum Equity. Similarly, employees at Golden Guernsey learned their company was closing when they showed up to work only to find the doors locked. It said the once-popular magazine was losing money and is now profitable. And the firm shut down its Fusion Paperboard plant just three years after acquiring it and only a few months after entering into a six-year contract with the local steelworkers union. June 16, 2021. Federal Civil Lawsuit California Central District Court, Case No. Uber drivers and other app-based workers are facing an all-out safety crisis. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Thanks for contacting us. OpenGate Capital. of the Connecticut boxboard company Fusion Paperboard, and nearly. OpenGate strategically invests in targeted sectors across five continents utilizing a diverse and experienced team with the ability to connect with business owners around the globe. It agreed to provide $3.1 million in financing in November 2013 for five days. We look to establish collaborative relationships with companies to drive operational improvement and realize opportunities for long-term value creation. OpenGate sued Thermo Fisher for breach of contract, negligent and fraudulent misrepresentation, and other things. The Motion was joined by defendants Andrew Nikou and Jay Yook.4 The The default, the hiring of the restructuring firm and the lenders presence on site paint a picture of a company in financial distress, the kind that former employees allege should have prompted OpenGate to provide a federally required 60 days notice before closing the plant. during its first decade in business, has run exactly that playbook in Janesville since acquiring Hufcor in 2017. OpenGate closed PennySaver on May 22 without warning. The lawsuits allege that a company or individual violated securities laws and are brought on behalf of the class. In fact, prosecutors allege, it was the senior Dardens neer-do-well son who had already spent three years in jail on an unrelated stock swindle looking to buy the lad mag. Andrew Nikou is the Founder & Chief Executive Officer at OpenGate Capital based in Los Angeles, California. OpenGate also faced numerous lawsuits stemming from its dealings at Hamilton Scientific, including not giving employees adequate notice of its Texas plant closure and selling a Mexican plant without disclosing it was harboring a drug cartel. OpenGate Capital Group LLC et al v. . for a better future. OpenGate Capital, which owns PennySaver, has, Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window), OpenGate Capital, which owns PennySaver, has closed other companies, too, Whats new: Loma Villas apartments sell for $21.5M to investor, 4 dead in Mojave Desert community after shooting report, El Chapo sons send Mexico cartels cheap fentanyl into US, Sacramento Snapshot: Cities would need to include homeless-serving housing in state plans under new bill, Orange County restaurants shut down by health inspectors (April 20-27), More land sliding at Casa Romantica; residents evacuated, trains halted through San Clemente, Orange County Artist of the Year winners announced, Then and Now: Photos of Casa Romantica show damage caused by landside, Fire at Barnes & Noble in Orange disrupts book-signing event, OC Marine who volunteered in Ukraine, survived rocket attack: I would do it again, The DMV says permission to drive is based on ability, but older drivers are scrutinized more, Cold, drizzly week ahead for Southern California, A look at Orange Countys baseball teams and the CIF-SS playoffs, Joe Bidens re-election bid is off to a bad start, Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information. The company is in the process of selling assets to make good on the loan, Fahn said. Andrew Nikou Founder, Chief Executive Officer OpenGate Capital 10250 Constellation Boulevard, 30th Floor OpenGate Capital is a global private equity firm specializing in the acquisition and operation of businesses to create new value through operational improvements, innovation, and growth. Revenue: $1 to $5 billion (USD) Competitors: Unknown. You get out of default.. All in the name to make us more efficient. Only logged in subscribers of this site will be able to access the shared article. OpenGate has a history of buying companies only to close operations shortly thereafter, leaving communities across the country in the lurch. But in court papers, Hamilton denied any illegal conduct. A court filing by the trustee overseeing the bankruptcy proceedings said Golden Guernsey owed $1.5 million because it had violated state labor laws that require 60 days notice to employees of mass layoffs. A global investment manager with a local touch. Jul. Reporting by Pallavi Ail in Bangalore, Karl Plume in Chicago; editing by Gunna Dickson. A $300-million (minimum) gondola to Dodger Stadium? His parents left their native Tehran before the Iranian Revolution and relocated to Canada, later moving with Nikou to California when he was four years old. "Top Dealmaker Andrew Nikou: The founder of Opengate Capital is making a name for himself on reclamation projects," Danielle Fugazy, Mergers & Acquisitions, 12-7-2010. We look to establish collaborative relationships with companies to drive operational improvement and realize opportunities for long-term value creation. Thermo Fisher made none of the upgrades that were recommended by its security advisers in January and February 2012, and took no meaningful action to fortify or further secure the Facility in response to the continuing cartel infiltration, the complaint said. [6] Nikou graduated from William Howard Taft Charter High School in Woodland Hills, California, where he was active in the Persian community. "OpenGate Capital Acquires Philips Business Communications in Brazil," Latin America Venture Capital, 3-18-2010. OpenGate sold OMMIC to Egalux SA Luxembourg in 2008. [9] In 2006, OpenGate purchased OMMIC, a former division of Philips. Earlier this year, employees at Hamilton Scientifics Wisconsin facility received notices that they would be laid off in 60 days but were then furloughed, according to an article from PE Hub, a publication that focuses on private equity companies. [6] He was bullied in school for being short. Among them were a French childrens book publisher, a Finnish paper producer, the Nicole Farhi division of fashion firm French Connection and Models One Ltd., the modeling agency that has represented supermodels Bar Refaeli, Alessandra Ambrosio, Linda Evangelista and others. Chief Operating Officer & Managing Director, Head of Investor Relations & Communications, Operations Expert, Manufacturing & Supply Chain, Senior Advisor, European M&A - Technology, Founder, Executive Chairman, XPRIZE Foundation, Technology Expert, Industrials, Environmental, & Manufacturing 4.0, 2023 OpenGate Capital Management, LLC. Once OpenGate snapped up by OpenGate in 2017, OpenGate's new regime heightened tensions and ended a relatively amicable relationship between management and the workers of IUE-CWA Local 84811 . OTHER FILED BY OPENGATE CAPITAL LLC ON 07/15/2015 [+] Read More [-] Read Less; 07/16/2015. In 2010, Dean Foods Company, its then owner, sold Golden Guernsey to a private equity company, Open Gate Capital, LLC ("Open Gate"), as part of the settlement of an antitrust lawsuit brought by the United States Department of Justice. Grace Matthews advised Chemsolv on the transaction. That would be a hard argument to make, he said. She briefly lived in Santiago, Chile where she edited an online magazine and worked as a translator for doctors from Malaysia following Chile's 8.8 earthquake in 2010. (Reuters) - Opengate Capital Group LLC filed a lawsuit on Friday alleging that laboratory equipment maker Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc TMO.N sold it a Mexican plant last year without revealing that a drug cartel was operating there. Mexican plant In 2013, Opengate Capital Group LLC filed suit against Thermo Fisher Scientific for selling it a manufacturing plant controlled by a drug cartel. Later that year, Nikou led OpenGate Capital's bid for McGraw-Hill Companies BusinessWeek magazine, then withdrew from the bidding. Those who cashed the bad checks were left on the hook for penalties levied by their banks. Its not a good sign, obviously, Kasoff said of the default. Andrew Nikou is the founder and CEO of OpenGate Capital, a global private buyout firm. Debra Clancy, a senior account manager at PennySaver, joined about 30 other former employees as they yelled towards the 17th floor of a building that houses OpenGate Capital in Century City during a recent protest against the company. Nikou was not named as a defendant in the suit. [5] At Platinum Equity, he expanded the firm's international presence in Europe. Nikou has received recognition for his business achievements. In October 2012, OpenGate Capital bought the laboratory workstations business of Thermo Fisher Scientific, a maker of laboratory furniture. The firm faced six different lawsuits after abruptly laying off Pennysaver employees in the middle of a work day and failing to give workers their final . The Hamilton shutdown was the result of a dispute in which the landlord of its main plant in Texas moved to evict the firm, imperiling the business, according to an OpenGate spokesman. 19, Ex. [23] OpenGate rebranded the business EverZinc; within Umicore it had generated $425 million in revenue in 2015.[24]. Not the case? Fahn, speaking for OpenGate, said that the union wasnt privy to the sale because the sale wasnt final. After decades of pro-corporate globalization, people numb to its effects might write . 7-14-2011) . 2 June 2015. (Photo provided by Americans for Financial Reform). At a chaotic meeting four days after PennySaver closed, employees were handed their final pay. It had been in business 50 years. [8] In 2004, he left Platinum Equity and moved back to Los Angeles to start his own global investment firm. The efforts by Cerberus Capital Management to unload Maxim magazine in late 2013 may go down as one of the most litigious divestments in publishing history. They cut salaries. While Janesville was once a manufacturing hub, it has experienced the devastating consequences of unfettered corporate greed. Nikou grew up with a passion for trading baseball cards and competing in breakdancing competitions. They think its a big joke. The goal of this section is to provide consumers with a comprehensive resource on class action and mass tort lawsuits. Thats the thing that bothers us most, McCarthy said. OpenGate's professionals possess the . Herb Titus, on what would have been his 20th anniversary with PennySaver, spent the afternoon protesting outside OpenGate Capital in Century City recently. OpenGate Capital, a global private equity firm, has acquired Umicore Zinc Chemicals, a global leader in the production of specialty zinc chemicals, from parent company Umicore. The company was starting to be profitable. With a strategic international presence and a focus on corporate carve-outs and complex . Our six-week newsletter will help you make the right decision for you and your property. What the fk is going on? Weinberg wrote in an email to Newkirk on Nov. 12 after learning his cash was gone, according to trial testimony. [21], In November 2016, OpenGate Capital completed the acquisition of the zinc products business of the Belgian company Umicore for $150 million in debt and equity. Senator Baldwin was a co-sponsor of the Stop Wall Street Looting Act, the first major effort to reform the private equity sector, in the last Congress. According to Opengate Capital, the company withheld important documents . 9JANESVILLE The labor union that represents workers at Janesville's Hufcor factory is now pressuring Hufcor owner OpenGate Capital with a shame campaign that's playing out in Los Angeles, OpenGate's corporate home city. Several pre-fund, legacy investments that were made with the personal capital of Andrew Nikou and the Partners at OpenGate Capital were sold: Benvic was sold to InvestIndustrial in December 2017, NorPaper Avot-Vallee was sold in 2018 to a private investor, and in January 2019, NAKAN (the largest division within Ivy Group) was sold to Westlake Chemical Corporation. Nikou is actively involved with the management of each of the companies held in the portfolio. Kasoff said that his sole focus after his company was brought in was on fixing PennySaver and that a shutdown was never contemplated until Capital One shut off credit without explanation. Janesville, Wis. - U.S. OpenGate Capital is a private equity firm that strives to acquire and optimize lower-to-middle market businesses throughout North America and Europe. 14 at 5-6; D.I. In 2010, Nikou was named a Top Dealmaker of 2010 by Mergers & Acquisitions magazine. 2023 NYP Holdings, Inc. All Rights Reserved, this week sits in the legal dock in Manhattan federal court, pleaded guilty to his own Maxim-related fraud charges in November, Woman has 'loud, full body orgasm' in the middle of LA concert, $76K NJ boarding school admits falling 'tragically short' in protecting teen who killed self after bullying, 'rapist' taunts, Meghan Markle's ailing dad says he refuses 'to be buried by her' in 'final ever' interview, Rihannas iconic Met Gala looks through the years, Fans question North Wests lavish pre-Met Gala gift for Kim Kardashian: No way, Perez Hilton: Boring Meghan and Harry need to give up and move back to UK, Elon Musk Tells Bill Maher Woke Mind Virus Is Dangerous On Real Time, Prince Harry's coronation role still a mystery as William's is revealed. I find it to be despicable.. Read our website privacy and cookies policy for more information. OpenGate tried to buy Maxim in early 2013 but was outbid by Darden Media Group. "They basically told us 'We don't want to get to . This spring, Hamilton Scientific, a De Pere, Wis., lab equipment maker owned by OpenGate, abruptly shut down, laying off 80 people there and 190 at plants in Texas and Arkansas without notice, according to a lawsuit filed by former employees. Ive been doing this over three decades. After laying off all 166 workers at Hufcor's Janesville plant, OpenGate Capital drove the company . Kasoff said that the bank explicitly forced the default when, on the last day of operations, a bank representative phoned to say that the bank would not advance the $400,000 needed to fund corporate payrolls unless PennySaver agreed to shut down and dismiss all employees not needed to wind down the company. It agreed to provide $3.1 million in . [33] In 2014, Nikou announced that he was forming a partnership with businessman Ricardo Salinas to bring Esperanza Azteca Youth Orchestra to Los Angeles through a partnership with the city's mayor, Eric Garcetti. Your activity looks suspicious to us. OpenGate Capital, the private equity firm that owns their employer, Hufcor, announced it was moving its plant out of Janesville, taking those workers jobs and livelihoods with it. Hufcor employees will not be the last to suffer at the hands of OpenGate, and nothing will change unless the firm is held accountable for its ruthless profiteering. 14 at 5-6.) Opengate said gang members brandished weapons to intimidate employees at the facility and parked their cars and tractor-trailers filled with unknown cargo there. 3 min read. On May 27, 2021, 166 workers in Janesville, Wisconsin awoke to a nightmare. This case was filed in Orange County Superior Courts, Civil Complex Center located in Orange, California. Capital One said it tried to work with PennySaver on the closure, but to no avail. The cases that former employees have highlighted as OpenGate failures include: the shuttering of Golden Guernsey on a Saturday morning in 2013, with no notice to employees; the closure of Connecticut-based Fusion Paperboard shortly after it had received a state loan to stay put for 10 years; and the shutdown of OpenGates laboratory furniture business, Hamilton Scientific, after it discovered that a drug cartel had overrun its Mexico plant and it was evicted from its Texas facility. Andrew Nikou is the founder and CEO of OpenGate Capital, a global private buyout firm. Former employees of OpenGate Capital portfolio company Hamilton Scientific have filed a class action complaint alleging the firm and company owe them compensation after the company . For ScioTeq, 2020 was again a record . OpenGate uncovered that the facility was being used by senior local leaders of the Mexican Gulf Cartel, according to a federal complaint filed on June 12 . Roughly $4.9 million of the $5.5 million of Weinbergs cash, forwarded to Newkirk, disappeared on Nov. 12, 2013, when a fake email, purportedly from Weinberg, released the money, prosecutors charge.
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opengate capital lawsuit