Clayton, Dubilier & Rice Agree to Buy David\'s Bridal

Love is in the air.

On Tuesday, the private equity firm Clayton, Dubilier & Rice agreed to buy David's Bridal in a deal that values the retailer at $1.05 billion, marking the latest industry buyout.

“David's Bridal is a unique and well-positioned specialty retailer competing in a large and stable industry,” Richard J. Schnall, a partner at Clayton Dubilier, said in a statement on Monday. “We look forward to working closely with the company to build on its market leadership and scale advantages to grow in new market segments, channels, and geographies.”

Earlier this summer, David Bridal's owners, Leonard Green and TPG Capital began shopping the company to other private equity firms. Despite the company's broad reachâ€" it has some 305 stores in the United States and Canadaâ€" the retailer has been bogged down by concerns about its ability to compete against new entrants and the increase of consumers looking for higher-priced gowns. The company, whi ch has a partnership with Vera Wang, sells gowns that range from $99 to $1500, but the bulk of its collection is in the middle of this range.

For Leonard Green and TPG, the deal represents a modest premium. The buyout firms bought David's Bridal in 2007 from Federated Department Stores for $750 million. Leonard Green will maintain a minority stake.

As of late, the retail industry has been a popular hunting group for private equity firms. Late last year, BJ's Wholesale Club agreed to a $2.8 billion buyout from Leonard Green and CVC Capital Partners. Meanwhile, in June, Thomas H. Lee Partners, agreed to buy a majority stake in Party City, in a deal that valued the party supply retailer at $2.69 billion.