The M&A Advisor has named the retail partnership between Sprint and RadioShack as the “Telecom Deal of the Year” in the annual M&A Advisor Turnaround Awards, which recognize top distressed investment and restructuring deals and the firms involved in closing the transactions. McGuireWoods advised its longtime client Sprint in completing the deal, which more than doubled Sprint’s company-owned retail footprint and expanded its ability to reach customers from coast to coast.
An independent panel of industry experts selected the award winners from nominations representing more than 200 participating companies. The awards will be presented Jan. 28 during the 2016 M&A Advisor Distressed Investing Summit in Palm Beach, Florida.
As part of RadioShack’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing in February, Sprint and General Wireless Inc. – a subsidiary of Standard General LP, RadioShack’s largest shareholder – agreed on terms to increase Sprint’s branded store distribution. Under the deal, Sprint agreed to be co-tenants in 1,435 existing RadioShack stores, with Sprint being the primary brand on storefronts and in marketing materials.
After a three-day competitive auction and a four-day contested sale hearing, a Delaware bankruptcy court approved the transaction on April 1. The McGuireWoods team representing Sprint closed the deal within hours that same day. After the deal was approved, Sprint announced plans to hire roughly 3,500 new employees for the new Sprint-RadioShack locations. In addition, more than 7,000 RadioShack employees were able to keep their jobs in the co-branded stores.
McGuireWoods lawyers from the firm’s Baltimore, Washington, D.C., Dallas, Richmond and Tysons Corner, Virginia, offices represented Sprint in the transaction. Partners David Swan in Tysons Corner and James Van Horn in Baltimore, both members of McGuireWoods’ Restructuring and Insolvency Department, led a multidisciplinary team that also included lawyers from the firm’s corporate and real estate practices.
“This was an important transaction for Sprint and we’re proud that we could close this deal for a valued client,” Swan said. “This was a great example of teamwork by McGuireWoods lawyers from multiple practices and the outstanding in-house team at Sprint. We can’t thank the members of the Sprint team enough for their efforts in this success.”
Founded in 1998, The M&A Advisor publishes insights and intelligence on mergers and acquisitions and serves as a premier leadership organization of M&A, turnaround and finance professionals.