Catalyst Equity Partners Buys Stanley Garage Door and Garage Door Opener Businesses; Taps Former Executive Stephen Anderson as President.

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 21, 1999--

Catalyst Equity Partners, LLC, announced today it has acquired the Stanley(R) brand residential garage door and garage door opener businesses of Whistler Auto-Mation Products. The new ownership group includes Stephen P. Anderson, former division manager of Stanley(R) Door Systems from 1986 to 1994, who will serve as President and CEO of the new business, which will be called Innovative Home Products, Inc.

Innovative Home Products, Inc., headquartered in Birmingham, MI, is a major manufacturer and distributor of residential garage doors, garage door openers and related products. Mr. Anderson said his team plans to operate the existing facilities, which include the main garage door manufacturing plant in Birmingham, MI; a garage door opener assembly facility in Covington, OH; and distribution centers in Rancho Cucamonga, CA and Mississauga, Ontario.

"We are excited about the prospects for this business, our customers and employees," Anderson stated. "Innovative Home Products, Inc. has the strength of a newly capitalized balance sheet and ample operating liquidity. We fully intend to build upon the excellent Stanley(R) brand, broadening our line of home improvement products that already is synonymous with high quality, reliability and value," he added. "For the first six months, our focus will be on implementing a new business plan that includes solidifying and expanding relationships with key national retailers, improving vendor relationships, gaining enhanced sources of supply, and augmenting our employee base to ensure success."

The company will seek advice from its 300 employees, and meet personally with all of its customers and vendors. "We are going to do some heavy listening," Anderson noted. "Success won't happen overnight, but I can't think of a better combination of products, brand name, people and investors to get the job done."

In addition to Mr. Anderson, the company has hired James L. Oliver to serve as Chief Financial Officer, an executive with a strong track record in diversified business management with extensive financial and accounting experience.

Innovative Home Products, Inc., manufactures and markets a broad line of Stanley(R) branded residential garage doors, garage door openers and related products through three primary channels: home centers, mass merchandisers, and professional dealers.

Catalyst Equity Partners, L.L.C., with offices in New York, Chicago and San Francisco, employs a highly differentiated investment strategy that seeks control equity investments in middle market businesses that are distressed or underperforming. A majority of its investment returns derive from significant restructuring and turnaround initiatives that target strategic redirection and improvements in operating performance. The firm manages committed institutional equity capital in excess of $100 million.