FT: Follett is being shopped - Retained Credit Suisse

According to the FT, the privately owned Follett company may be in the process of selling itself (FT):

Follett Corporation, the private River Grove, Illinois-based educational publishing company, is in the midst of a sale process, two industry bankers told dealReporter.

It is not clear whether the company is selling one of its six divisions or the corporation as a whole, the bankers said. Follett did not respond to requests for comment.

Credit Suisse, which declined comment for this story, has been retained to advise Follett as it looks at options, one of the bankers said.

The company plans to hold management presentations at the end of July with potential suitors, the second banker said. He said he thought the company must have had an initial round with a “select group” of bidders. Follett generated USD 2.7bn in revenue last year, according to its website. The company appointed Chuck Follett acting CEO 12 months ago.

The article is sparse on details however they admit that neither the company nor the bank has responded to requests for comment. Silly acquisition possibilities are suggested but no one really knows who would be interested in either the entire company or selected parts.

This brings yet more unneeded uncertainty to the book retail channel.