Waterford Wedgwood plc was an Irish
holding company
A holding company is a company whose primary business is holding a controlling interest in the securities of other companies. A holding company usually does not produce goods or services itself. Its purpose is to own shares of other companies ...
for a group of firms that specialized in the manufacture of high-quality
porcelain
Porcelain () is a ceramic material made by heating substances, generally including materials such as kaolinite, in a kiln to temperatures between . The strength and translucence of porcelain, relative to other types of pottery, arises main ...
,
bone china
Bone china is a type of ceramic that is composed of bone ash, feldspathic material, and kaolin. It has been defined as "ware with a translucent body" containing a minimum of 30% of phosphate derived from animal bone and calculated calcium phospha ...
and
glass
Glass is a non-crystalline, often transparent, amorphous solid that has widespread practical, technological, and decorative use in, for example, window panes, tableware, and optics. Glass is most often formed by rapid cooling (quenching) of ...
products, mostly for use as
tableware
Tableware is any dish or dishware used for setting a table, serving food, and dining. It includes cutlery, glassware, serving dishes, and other items for practical as well as decorative purposes. The quality, nature, variety and number of o ...
or home decor. The group was dominated by Irish businessman
Tony O'Reilly
Sir Anthony Joseph Francis O'Reilly (born 7 May 1936) is an Irish former businessman and international rugby union player. He is known for his involvement in the Independent News & Media Group, which he led from 1973 to 2009,Dublin, Ireland, ...
and his family, including his wife
Chryss Goulandris
Chryss Goulandris, Lady O'Reilly (born 27 June 1950), also known as Chryssanthie (from the Greek) or Christina, is one of the richest women associated with Ireland, and holds both USA and Greek citizenship. For many years, she owned a major hors ...
and her family, with the two families together having invested hundreds of millions of euros in it. The group's financial record was mixed, and significant cost-cutting had been ongoing for many years.
In 2009, parts of the group, including the main Irish and UK operations, were placed into
receivership
In law, receivership is a situation in which an institution or enterprise is held by a receiver—a person "placed in the custodial responsibility for the property of others, including tangible and intangible assets and rights"—especially in c ...
and acquired by
KPS Capital Partners
KPS Capital Partners is an American investment company that manages KPS Special Situation Funds, a family of investment funds. KPS specifically invests out of two funds raised in October 2019: KPS Special Situations Fund V ($6.12 billion) and KPS ...
, a New York-based
private equity firm
A private equity firm is an investment management company that provides financial backing and makes investments in the private equity of startup or operating companies through a variety of loosely affiliated investment strategies including lev ...
.
Waterford Crystal
Waterford Crystal is a manufacturer of lead glass or "crystal", especially in cut glass, named after the city of Waterford, Ireland. In January 2009, the main Waterford Crystal manufacturing base on the edge of Waterford was closed due to the ...
and
Wedgwood
Wedgwood is an English fine china, porcelain and luxury accessories manufacturer that was founded on 1 May 1759 by the potter and entrepreneur Josiah Wedgwood and was first incorporated in 1895 as Josiah Wedgwood and Sons Ltd. It was rapid ...
, along with
Royal Doulton
Royal Doulton is an English ceramic and home accessories manufacturer that was founded in 1815. Operating originally in Vauxhall, London, and later moving to Lambeth, in 1882 it opened a factory in Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, in the centre of Engl ...
and other brands, were transferred to a new company named
WWRD Holdings Limited
WWRD Holdings Limited is a company that was created by KPS Capital Partners in 2009 out of the remains of Irish firm Waterford Wedgwood plc, and it has been owned since 2015 by Finnish home products maker Fiskars. The company owns Waterford Cry ...
(with WWRD as an
acronym
An acronym is a word or name formed from the initial components of a longer name or phrase. Acronyms are usually formed from the initial letters of words, as in ''NATO'' (''North Atlantic Treaty Organization''), but sometimes use syllables, as ...
for 'Waterford Wedgwood Royal Doulton').
In July 2015, WWRD Holdings was acquired by
Fiskars
Fiskars Group (also known as Fiskars Oyj Abp or Fiskars Corporation, and until 1998 as Fiskars Oy Ab) is a Finnish group company. The company has its roots in the village of Fiskars (in the town of Raseborg, about west of Helsinki), where it ...
, a Finnish consumer goods company.
History
The company was founded in 1987 through the merger of Waterford Crystal and Wedgwood, to create an Ireland-based luxury brands group. The firm traced its heritage to the 1780s. The group's constituent companies were Waterford Crystal, with brands including ''Waterford'', ''Marquis by Waterford'' and a number of Waterford-designer cooperations, Wedgwood (Josiah Wedgwood and Sons), with the range of Wedgwood brands, and English Royal Doulton. The group also licensed its brands to other companies.
Private investment company Oak Point Partners acquired the remnant assets, consisting of any known and unknown assets that weren't previously administered, from the Waterford Wedgwood USA, Inc., et al., Bankruptcy Estates on 8 December 2017.
Receivership
Sales for the year to 5 April 2008 were €671.8 million, down 9.4% year-on-year. Losses were €231.1 million, up from €71.3 million in the previous year. On 2 April 2008, the CEO, Peter Cameron (previously COO, and prior to that CEO of acquisition All-Clad), resigned, and was replaced by
David Sculley. Operational costs were reduced, with around 4,000 jobs removed or in the process of being removed between early 2005 and late 2008. In October 2008, the shares fell to .001 euro cent. Following the failure of the 2008 share issue and the subsequent defaulting of bank covenants by the company in December 2008, Tony O'Reilly Jr stated in January 2009 that the company was in advanced negotiations with a US private equity company concerning a rescue package, which would result in the bulk of the company's production moving away from the UK and Ireland to Indonesia (where the company already has some production facilities. On 5 January 2009, David Sculley, chief executive officer of Waterford Wedgwood PLC, announced that Waterford Wedgwood had been put into
receivership
In law, receivership is a situation in which an institution or enterprise is held by a receiver—a person "placed in the custodial responsibility for the property of others, including tangible and intangible assets and rights"—especially in c ...
after the heavily indebted firm had failed to find a buyer.
Union members organized and occupied the Dublin offices lobby and the Kilbarry Plant protesting the withdrawal of credit lines by The Bank of America and threatened 480 redundancies. Their aim, according to blogger, Fiona Harrington "to either have the company nationalised, or to maintain it as a going concern until a buyer can be found."
On 27 February 2009, Waterford Wedgwood's receiver, David Carson of
Deloitte
Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited (), commonly referred to as Deloitte, is an international professional services network headquartered in London, England. Deloitte is the largest professional services network by revenue and number of professio ...
, announced that the New York-based
private equity firm
A private equity firm is an investment management company that provides financial backing and makes investments in the private equity of startup or operating companies through a variety of loosely affiliated investment strategies including lev ...
KPS Capital Partners
KPS Capital Partners is an American investment company that manages KPS Special Situation Funds, a family of investment funds. KPS specifically invests out of two funds raised in October 2019: KPS Special Situations Fund V ($6.12 billion) and KPS ...
had purchased "certain Irish and UK assets of Waterford Wedgwood and the assets of several of its Irish and UK subsidiaries." 176 out of the threatened 480 jobs were saved, although the deal did not include the Waterford site.
Former directors
Following the resignations on 5 January 2009 of the Chairman, Senior Independent Director, Lady O'Reilly and a former CEO, and of further directors on the 8th and 9th, and the departure of John Foley, the Board of Directors comprises the below. All resigning directors have also resigned from subsidiary boards.
Up to 5 January 2009, the Board of Directors comprised the below, many having served for a decade or more:
WWRD Holdings Limited
On 5 January 2009, following years of financial problems at the group level, and after a share placement failed during the
global financial crisis of 2008
Global means of or referring to a globe and may also refer to:
Entertainment
* ''Global'' (Paul van Dyk album), 2003
* ''Global'' (Bunji Garlin album), 2007
* ''Global'' (Humanoid album), 1989
* ''Global'' (Todd Rundgren album), 2015
* Bruno ...
, Waterford Wedgwood was placed into administration
on a "going concern" basis, with 1800 employees remaining. On 27 February 2009, Waterford Wedgwood's
receiver,
Deloitte
Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited (), commonly referred to as Deloitte, is an international professional services network headquartered in London, England. Deloitte is the largest professional services network by revenue and number of professio ...
, announced that the New York-based private equity firm
KPS Capital Partners
KPS Capital Partners is an American investment company that manages KPS Special Situation Funds, a family of investment funds. KPS specifically invests out of two funds raised in October 2019: KPS Special Situations Fund V ($6.12 billion) and KPS ...
had purchased "certain Irish and UK assets of Waterford Wedgwood and the assets of several of its Irish and UK subsidiaries" in a transaction expected to be completed in March. KPS Capital Partners placed Wedgwood into a group of companies known as WWRD, an acronym for "Waterford Wedgwood Royal Doulton".
In May 2015,
Fiskars
Fiskars Group (also known as Fiskars Oyj Abp or Fiskars Corporation, and until 1998 as Fiskars Oy Ab) is a Finnish group company. The company has its roots in the village of Fiskars (in the town of Raseborg, about west of Helsinki), where it ...
, a Finnish maker of home products, agreed to buy 100% of the holdings of WWRD.
On 2 July 2015, the acquisition of WWRD by Fiskars Corporation was completed, including the brands Waterford, Wedgwood, Royal Doulton, Royal Albert and Rogaška. The acquisition was approved by the US antitrust authorities.
References
External links
Company websiteRosenthal Website, GermanRosenthal Website, USRoyal Doulton WebsiteWaterford Crystal WebsiteWedgwood Website
Cashs of Ireland WebsiteWaterford Wedgwood Press Release Regarding Receivership*
{{Authority control
Ceramics manufacturers of Ireland
Glassmaking companies of Ireland
Figurine manufacturers
Defunct manufacturing companies of the Republic of Ireland
Organisations based in Waterford (city)
Manufacturing companies established in 1987
Companies disestablished in 2009
Irish companies established in 1987
2009 disestablishments in Ireland
Goulandris family
Tony O'Reilly family
Tourist attractions in Waterford (city)