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Romney's Sterling Business Career

MaggieD

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I sure missed this. Wouldn't have known if I hadn't read an article about Clinton's speech at the convention. From Bill Clinton, in an interview with CNN's Piers Morgan:

[Romney] . . . a man who's been governor and had a sterling business career crosses the qualifications threshold.

Here's a little squib from a tiny website set up after Clinton said what he did. I thought it would be interesting to Romney supporters:

Governor Romney's time at Bain Capital was spent fixing struggling businesses and giving new businesses a shot at success. From 1984, when Romney co-founded the firm, to February 1999 when he left to lead the Olympics, Romney helped save thousands of jobs at companies that were in trouble. And the businesses Romney helped start while at Bain Capital employ more than 100,000 people today.

Since Bain Capital's founding, the company has had a remarkable record of success, especially considering that it largely invests with struggling or startup enterprises. Eighty percent of Bain Capital's portfolio companies have increased revenues, and only five percent of the companies under its control have filed for bankruptcy. Romney's work not only helped to save and create jobs, it also provided returns to investors, the majority of which were pension funds for retirees, university endowments helping with financial aid, and charities serving their local communities.

This experience helped Romney fix a scandal-plagued and debt-ridden Olympics in 2002 and to fix a budget shortfall in Massachusetts. He knows how to provide strong leadership in challenging times, and he will bring that experience with him to the White House to fix America's broken economy and to create jobs for the millions of Americans who are out of work.
The Obama campaign's attacks on business and free enterprise aren't just false; they explain why we aren't creating jobs. They reveal what this President really thinks about free enterprise. This is the most anti-business President in memory, and the results are clear: 23 million Americans are struggling for work, and unemployment has been above eight percent for 42 straight months. It's time to make a change to someone who understands the private sector and can get America working again.
 
Eighty percent of Bain Capital's portfolio companies have increased revenues, and only five percent of the companies under its control have filed for bankruptcy.

The stories we don't hear:

Staples

Mitt Romney and Bain Capital invested in Staples as a startup to give it a chance to grow. Today it provides over 87,700 jobs.

In 1986, Staples opened its first store in Brighton, Massachusetts. Today, Staples operates more than 1,500 stores and 56 distribution centers across 49 states and the District of Columbia. In 2011, Staples had more than $25 billion in sales.

Staples founder Tom Stemberg recalls Mitt's role in the company: "Mitt didn't just invest in Staples when it was an idea -- he hung around .... He was the inspirational leader and while Staples may have existed without him, I doubt it would have been nearly as big or successful without him."

Steel Dynamics

When the steel industry was laying off workers and dozens of companies were going bankrupt, Mitt Romney and Bain Capital saw an opportunity for a new steel company, using new technology, to succeed. Today, Steel Dynamics employs more than 6,500 workers across the United States.

In 1994, Bain Capital helped make Steel Dynamics possible by joining with GE to provide critical venture capital funding in a costly and struggling industry. In less than 20 years, Steel Dynamics has become America's fifth-largest producer of carbon-steel products with $8 billion in revenues. It is one of just six major American steel companies.

From its initial base in Indiana, Steel Dynamics has grown to include plants in Roanoke, Virginia; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; and Huntington, West Virginia. Additional operations, including mining, recycling and steel fabrication centers, have created jobs across Georgia, Indiana, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, Minnesota, Florida, Arkansas, and Nevada.

GoCom

GoCom was a small group of television stations when Bain Capital partnered with them to help grow the company. Bain Capital invested $100 million dollars, and GoCom was able to expand from four to ten television stations across the United States.

Thanks to strong management and the support of Bain Capital, GoCom was able to increase ad sales, increase revenues and increase employment. When Bain Capital sold its stake in GoCom, the merged company had grown to 800 employees with revenues of $80 million.

GT Bicycles

Bain Capital invested in California-based GT Bicycles in 1993 when America's love affair with mountain biking was just starting to take off. GT more than doubled American employment during Bain Capital's involvement, rising from 350 to 750 workers.

With Bain Capital's help, GT built a new, state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in southern California, upgraded facilities in New York and Missouri, and added new distribution facilities in Florida and Wisconsin.

Alliance Laundry

Bain Capital acquired a Wisconsin-based laundry machine manufacturing business in 1998 when its prior owner sought to leave the industry completely. Facing a $77 million revenue loss and fears that the Ripon, Wisconsin, factory would incur massive layoffs, Bain Capital helped local management take steps necessary to strengthen their business and compete in a global marketplace.

With Bain Capital's help, Alliance Laundry weathered a dramatic market transition, added Wisconsin jobs, and has grown into one of the largest commercial laundry manufacturers in the world.
 
More stories we don't hear:

Bain & Company

In 1990, Mitt Romney's former firm, Bain & Company, was in a dire situation. It was on the brink of collapse. The leaders of Bain & Co. asked Romney to come back to the firm to lead it out of the precipitous fall it was experiencing. His return to the company provided an instantaneous morale boost for the employees that recognized Romney's leadership capabilities and his strong record of turning around companies. He reined in spending, made executives more financially accountable, and put the focus back on customer service.

Bain & Co.'s turnaround was an incredible success: In just a year, a company on the brink had returned to profitability. Mitt Romney not only saved thousands of jobs, but also set the firm on a course to be one of the largest and most successful management consulting firms in the world. Today, Boston-based Bain & Co. has more than 5,000 employees - including 3,500 consultants - and is ranked #1 on multiple "best places to work" lists.

Brookstone

Before Mitt Romney and Bain Capital invested in New Hampshire-based Brookstone in 1991, news reports stated that the company was in "dire straits." During their investment, however, the company witnessed a dramatic turnaround.

During the Brookstone investment, the company opened more than 100 stores and added more than 740 jobs across the United States. Brookstone's revenues nearly tripled from $95 million to $270 million.

Today, Brookstone is one of New Hampshire's largest corporations, and the growth that began during Bain Capital's investment has continued. Brookstone has subsequently added more than 1,100 employees across 294 retail stores in the United States. And in 2011, Brookstone recorded nearly half a billion dollars in revenues.

Wesley Jessen

Bain Capital's investment in Wesley Jessen, a contact lens manufacturer, has been praised by National Public Radio as a "major success story." The manufacturer's previous owner struggled to "get rid" of the division, which "was becoming a drag on their business." When Bain Capital acquired the company, it was in its second consecutive year of losses greater than $50 million.

With Bain Capital's help, the company quickly turned around, saving 1,600 jobs and creating 100 new jobs. By shifting their product line and production process, Wesley Jessen was able to reduce the price of its contact lenses while returning to profitability. After just three years, the company went from losing $50 million to turning a nearly $30 million profit.
 
Some of Bain's Investors

* Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund ($2.2 million)
* Indiana Public Retirement System ($39.3 million)
* Iowa Public Employees’ Retirement System ($177.1 million)
* The Los Angeles Fire and Police Pension System ($19.5 million)
* Maryland State Retirement and Pension System ($117.5 million)
* Public Employees’ Retirement System of Nevada ($20.3 million)
* State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio ($767.3 million)
* Pennsylvania State Employees’ Retirement System ($231.5 million)
* Employees’ Retirement System of Rhode Island ($25 million)
* San Diego County Employees Retirement Association ($23.5 million)
* Teacher Retirement System of Texas ($122.5 million)
* Tennessee Consolidated Retirement System ($15 million)

These funds aggregate the savings of millions of unionized teachers, social workers, public-health personnel and first responders. Many would be startled to learn that their nest eggs are incubated by the company that Romney launched and the financiers he hired.


More of Bain's Investors

Leading universities have also profited from Bain’s expertise. According to Infrastructure Investor, Bain Capital Ventures Fund I (launched in 2001) managed wealth for “endowments and foundations such as Columbia, Princeton and Yale universities.”
According to BuyOuts magazine and S&P Capital IQ, Bain’s other college clients have included Cornell, Emory, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Notre Dame and the University of Pittsburgh. Preqin reports that the following schools have placed at least $424.6 million with Bain Capital between 1998 and 2008:
* Purdue University ($15.9 million)
* University of California ($225.7 million)
* University of Michigan ($130 million)
* University of Virginia ($20 million)
* University of Washington ($33 million)

Center Left Investors

Major, center-left foundations and cultural establishments also have seen their prospects brighten, thanks to Bain Capital. According to the aforementioned sources, such Bain clients have included the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, the Doris Duke Foundation, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Ford Foundation, the Heinz Endowments and the Oprah Winfrey Foundation.

Read more:

Look who parks their cash at Bain - NYPOST.com
 
And, finally --

Is Bain really a gang of corporate buccaneers who plunder their ill-gotten gains by outsourcing, euthanizing feeble portfolio companies and giving cancer to the spouses of those whom they fired? If so, union bosses, government retirees, liberal foundations and elite universities thrive on the wages of Bain’s economic Darwinism.

If, however, these institutions relish the yields that Bain Capital generates by supporting start-ups and rescuing distressed companies, 80 percent of which have prospered, then this money is honest — and Team Obama isn’t.

Read more: Look who parks their cash at Bain - NYPOST.com

So. The next time anyone harps on Bain Capital, link them here.
 
Maggie, I know I've said this before.... but you are the bomb. Golden find, all those investors in Bain. :)
 
Some of Bain's Investors

* Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund ($2.2 million)
* Indiana Public Retirement System ($39.3 million)
* Iowa Public Employees’ Retirement System ($177.1 million)
* The Los Angeles Fire and Police Pension System ($19.5 million)
* Maryland State Retirement and Pension System ($117.5 million)
* Public Employees’ Retirement System of Nevada ($20.3 million)
* State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio ($767.3 million)
* Pennsylvania State Employees’ Retirement System ($231.5 million)
* Employees’ Retirement System of Rhode Island ($25 million)
* San Diego County Employees Retirement Association ($23.5 million)
* Teacher Retirement System of Texas ($122.5 million)
* Tennessee Consolidated Retirement System ($15 million)

These funds aggregate the savings of millions of unionized teachers, social workers, public-health personnel and first responders. Many would be startled to learn that their nest eggs are incubated by the company that Romney launched and the financiers he hired.


More of Bain's Investors

Leading universities have also profited from Bain’s expertise. According to Infrastructure Investor, Bain Capital Ventures Fund I (launched in 2001) managed wealth for “endowments and foundations such as Columbia, Princeton and Yale universities.”
According to BuyOuts magazine and S&P Capital IQ, Bain’s other college clients have included Cornell, Emory, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Notre Dame and the University of Pittsburgh. Preqin reports that the following schools have placed at least $424.6 million with Bain Capital between 1998 and 2008:
* Purdue University ($15.9 million)
* University of California ($225.7 million)
* University of Michigan ($130 million)
* University of Virginia ($20 million)
* University of Washington ($33 million)

Center Left Investors

Major, center-left foundations and cultural establishments also have seen their prospects brighten, thanks to Bain Capital. According to the aforementioned sources, such Bain clients have included the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, the Doris Duke Foundation, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Ford Foundation, the Heinz Endowments and the Oprah Winfrey Foundation.

Read more:

Look who parks their cash at Bain - NYPOST.com

Oh, well, isn't that interesting. That looks like a good mention in a commercial in a swing state or three.
 
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