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Global Leisure Partners LLP
17/18 Old Bond Street, London W1S 4PT, United Kingdom
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7016 8050, Fax: +44 (0) 20 7016 8060
Web: www.globalleisurepartners.com |
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Team |
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Team
Founded by Mark Harms in 2004, GLP has built a strong team of professionals combining investment bankers, management consultants, lawyers and accountants. This provides a comprehensive set of skills and experience that has enabled GLP to advise to date on over US$42.5 billion transactions across Europe, the U.S. and Asia.
(Please click on a name for biography)
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Mark Harms is the Managing Director, CEO & Director of Global Leisure Partners. Mark has been involved in all aspects of GLP since inception in 2004 and has pioneered its strategic direction. This has led to GLP advising on over US$42.5 billion of transactions to date, deploying significant capital in a number of deals and developing an industry leading Operating Executive Network. Mark divides his time equally between the U.S. and the U.K.
Mark has significant experience in the leisure sector having completed advisory and principal transactions in North and South America, Europe and Australia over the last 20 years. With over 100 completed advisory engagements and with more than half of these in the fitness, gaming, hospitality and leisure industries, Mark brings a deep understanding and knowledge regarding the competitive strategies of the major companies in each industry sector. In addition, Mark has extensive experience with regard to leveraged debt, mezzanine and equity financing techniques in Europe and the U.S. with over US$100bn in completed transactions. Mark has a strong knowledge of financing markets worldwide, significant restructuring expertise and is also highly experienced in cross-border transactions.
Prior to founding GLP, he previously worked at Oppenheimer as a Managing Director and at CIBC as Global Head of the Gaming, Lodging, and Leisure Group as well as the Head of the Consumer Growth Group. Under his leadership Oppenheimer and CIBC developed a global reputation for financing and advisory excellence and leading market shares in each of the key financing product lines. Mr. Harms has a BA (Honors) from the University of Michigan and an MBA from the University of Chicago. He is fluent in German. |
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Lindsay Harms, a Managing Director & Director of GLP LLP, co-founded Global Leisure Partners with Robert Decker and Mark Harms in 2004. Prior to this, she was a Vice President of Sales at Merrill/Corporate Printing and Bowne of New York, and a senior sales representative at R.R. Donnelley Financial. Lindsay also was Assistant Corporate Secretary of US Trust Corporation and the United States Trust Company of New York. Lindsay is responsible for human resources with Bob Decker, GLP’s marketing efforts, and is a member of the Executive Committee.
Lindsay graduated from Skidmore College with a BA in Business and French. She is fluent in French.
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Robert Decker is a Managing Director, CAO & Director of Global Leisure Partners. His operational expertise has ensured that GLP has been able to grow successfully and capitalize on meeting the significant number of opportunities created since inception. In addition, Robert’s prior experience in the hospitality and racing industry continues to create potential investment opportunities in the UK and U.S. sector.
Prior to founding GLP, Robert was Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President of Churchill Downs and Vice President Finance of Hilton International Corporation. At Churchill Downs Robert directed the Company's financial, treasury, investor relations, information technology and administrative functions during a period of dramatic growth. He also managed the Company's mergers and acquisitions of four racetracks, the capital transactions that funded them and directed the spin-off of the Company's strategic business into a separate operating unit. Mark Harms and Robert have worked together since 1997, when they devised and then collectively executed this strategic plan for Churchill Downs. Robert has a BS degree from Florida State University, is a Certified Public Accountant and is based in Louisville, Kentucky. |
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Chris Gagnon joined GLP in September 2006 and is a Managing Director & Director of Global Leisure Partners. He is also President of Global Leisure Capital Partners, GLP’s co-investment and principal investment business. Chris brings an investor perspective to GLP and is able to leverage his strategic and operating expertise by working with GLP’s Operating Executive Advisors and Strategic Investors to develop new ways to create value in GLP’s investment space.
Previously, Chris was a Managing Director at Inverness Management. He has also worked in private equity at both Merrill Lynch Private Equity Partners and Blue Capital Management. In these roles Chris completed deals as both lead and co-investor, resulting in the investment of over $300 million in equity into deals and several billion dollars of enterprise value.
Before entering private equity, Chris was a Principal at McKinsey & Co. where he worked from 1987 to 1997 in Los Angeles and New Jersey. While at McKinsey, hotels and gaming were two of his special areas of client service. In addition, Chris was a core member of the Firm’s Organization practice and he led the team that wrote “Real Change Leaders” (Random House Times Books 1996). He is also the author of several articles on change management and governance in publications such as the Harvard Business Review. Chris has both a BA and an MBA from Dartmouth College. |
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Paul Richardson joined GLP in April 2005 and is now a Managing Director of the firm. Since joining Paul has led the execution of several transactions including Permira’s acquisition of a 30% equity interest in Gala Group at a £1.9 billion enterprise value, Gala Group’s £2.1 billion acquisition of Coral Eurobet, Hg Capital’s £76 million buyout of Sporting Index, Principal Hotels’ £358 million acquisition of Hayley Conference Centres and Permira’s 20% investment into Galaxy Entertainment Group for $840m.
Previously he was an Executive Director in CIBC World Markets’ European Mergers & Acquisitions Group where he worked extensively with Mark Harms. A solicitor by training, Paul Richardson worked as a senior associate at Norton Rose, the London headquartered law firm, for eight years as an attorney specializing in mergers and acquisitions and securities law. He has extensive experience in cross-border private and public company acquisitions, IPOs and other securities transactions. Paul Richardson has a law and French degree (LLB Hons.) from Cardiff University in the U.K. and is admitted as a solicitor of the Supreme Court of England and Wales. He is fluent in French. |
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Tina Palastanga joined the firm in May 2004 having previously spent five years at Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein in both the European Transaction Group and the Food, Consumer and Retail Group. Tina has since been involved in a number of major transactions while at GLP, including the sale of 50% of Atronic to GTECH Holdings, Permira’s acquisition of 30% in Gala Group at a £1.9 billion enterprise value, Gala Group’s £2.1 billion acquisition of Coral Eurobet, Hg Capital’s £76 million buyout of Sporting Index, the £31 million sale of the Clermont Club from Rank Group plc, Permira and Apax’s €1.14 billion acquisition of Italian gaming group Sisal SpA and the $31.2 billion leveraged buyout of Harrah’s Entertainment, Inc. by Apollo and TPG.
Tina Palastanga was educated at Birmingham University and completed an Executive Management Training programme at INSEAD. She is fluent in German and Italian. |
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Adam Loriente joined GLP in November 2004 having previously worked at PricewaterhouseCoopers in Melbourne, Australia as a Manager in the Corporate Finance group for four years, following two years in the Valuation & Strategy team. Since joining GLP, Adam has been involved in several transactions including Permira's acquisition of a 30% equity interest in Gala Group at a £1.9 billion enterprise value, Gala Group's £2.1 billion acquisition of Coral Eurobet, BC Partners' £840 million buyout of Fitness First, the £31 million sale of the Clermont Club from Rank Group plc, Principal Hotels' £358 million acquisition of Hayley Conference Centres, Permira's 20% investment into Galaxy Entertainment Group for $840m and Crown Limited's pending $1.8 billion acquisition of Cannery Casino Resorts.
Adam Loriente received a B.Commerce from Melbourne University and has completed a Graduate Diploma in Applied Finance & Investment from the Financial Services Institute of Australia. |
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Michael Petschler joined GLP in August 2006. Michael Petschler previously worked as an Equities Analyst for Macquarie Bank in Sydney, Australia. During his time at Macquarie, Michael provided stock coverage of companies in the Tourism and Leisure sector including casino, gaming, wagering, pubs and hotel groups. Michael also gained experience working and advising on a number of corporate transactions within the sector, including IPOs and mergers and acquisitions. Michael has been involved in the $31.2 billion leveraged buyout of Harrah's Entertainment, Inc. by Apollo and TPG and Crown Limited's pending $1.8bn acquisition of Cannery Casino Resorts
Michael Petschler holds a B.Commerce (Economics and Finance) from the University of Sydney and has completed a Graduate Diploma in Applied Finance & Investment from the Financial Services Institute of Australia. |
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David Bains joined Global Leisure Partners in October 2006. Since joining, David has been involved in Permira’s 20% investment into Galaxy Entertainment Group for $840m and is editor of GLP’s Quarterly Review. David previously worked as a Consultant at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) in London. During his time at PwC David worked in several teams focusing predominantly on the valuation of shares and shares options provided to senior executives of FTSE 100 entities. This provided exposure to several corporate transactions, including mergers and acquisitions and IPO’s, across a variety of sectors.
David received a BSc in Business, Mathematics and Statistics from the London School of Economics in 2003, qualified as a chartered accountant in 2006 and gained the ICAEW Intermediate Corporate Finance Diploma in 2007.
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Alexa Sale joined Global Leisure Partners in June 2005. Previously, she worked for the British Museum as a Fundraising Manager in their Development Department for 5 years where she was responsible for Trusts, Foundations and Public Sector fundraising. Prior to that she worked for the NSPCC and Walker Books Ltd.
Alexa Sale has an English Literature Degree (MA Hons) from Edinburgh University.
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Accountant |
+44 (0) 20 7016 8040 |
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Céline Tarnay joined Global Leisure Partners in December 2007.
Previously she worked in Property Management for Farley Surveying & Professional Limited. Prior to that she worked for the new UAE based airline Etihad Airways in London, IATA (International Air Transport Association) and British Airways in Geneva, Switzerland.
She is fluent in French. |
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Stephanie Bartosh joined Global Leisure Partners as an Executive Assistant/Office Manager for New Jersey in December 2007.
Previously she worked for a Medical Education Company as a Senior Program Coordinator and prior to that worked as a Project Coordinator through a third party vendor to Amgen Pharmaceuticals.
Stephanie has a BS in Business Management from Kean University. |
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