On Jan. 4, the Watermill Group ("Watermill") acquired Weston Forest Products Inc. ("Weston"), a distributor and remanufacturer of softwood and hardwood lumber and specialty panel products. Weston operates several facilities across eastern Canada and the U.S., providing products and services that are essential to commercial and residential construction as well as the production and shipment of industrial goods. Watermill is a Massachusett-based strategy-driven private investment firm.
Customers and suppliers of Weston benefit from the company’s diverse business model and concentration on niche markets, which has helped insulate Weston Forest from the usual impacts of commodity cycles and economic swings. The acquisition will allow Weston to continue to offer customers and suppliers a diverse range of products and services, while providing more opportunities to employees.
Watermill included Canadian private investment firm Walter Capital Partners as a co-invest partner. National Bank of Canada and TD Bank (together, the "Lenders") provided debt financing for the transaction.
Weston will retain its name and operate as a portfolio company of Watermill.
Bennett Jones LLP was Canadian legal counsel to Watermill, with a team including
Gordon Cameron,
Xenia Wong,
Anna Ren,
Bianca Jacob-Okorn,
Yohanna Laurensia,
Kyle Donnelly,
Susan G. Seller,
Jaspreet Kaur,
Sara Parchello,
Talia Bregman,
Sarah Gilbert,
Mark Rasile,
Oliver Loxley,
Dom Sorbara,
Hussein Rehmanji,
Dominique Hussey,
Melissa Dimilta,
Jessica Horwitz,
Jane Helmstadter,
Giovanna Campagna,
Darcy Moch,
Jared Mackey,
Sebastien Gittens,
HC Lee,
Elizabeth Dylke.
Proskauer Rose LLP was U.S. legal counsel to Watermill, with a team including
James Lee,
Jae Park,
Robert Chiu,
Brittany Perskin,
Camille Higonnet,
Kendall Bass,
Antonio Carrera,
Jinyoung Joo,
Carolyn Killea,
Nancy Kil.
Torkin Manes LLP was Canadian legal counsel to Weston and its shareholders with a team including
Jeffrey Cohen,
Sammy Redlick,
Hunter Forman,
Taryn Meyer,
Glen Eddie,
Yale Hertzman,
Adrian Myers,
Ted Citrome,
Kay Leung,
Kenneth Beallor,
Fay Sulley,
Leslie McGowran,
Dan Pugen,
Lisa Lifshitz.
McCarthy Tetrault LLP was legal counsel to the Lenders with a team including
Justin Lapedus,
William Lee,
Sarah Ferguson,
Deron Waldock,
Kabir Jamal.