Another PE Example

Here is another example of a private equity firm buying, stripping, ruining, and closing a retail firm.  This Washington Post article describes Sun Capital's acquisition and management of Marsh Supermarkets, with a particular emphasis on how Sun Capital used bankruptcy to get out of meeting employee pension obligations.  These stories seem to write themselves: Wall Street bankers start a private equity firm and raise investment capital, buy a business they now nothing about and have no skills to run or improve, sell valuable assets, leverage remaining assets, declare bankruptcy and close business, all the while taking out big fees and salaries.  This is a lopsided ledger, but Sun Capital's investors got their money out, probably at some positive Internal Rate of Return, so Sun Capital can claim its investment in Marsh Supermarket a success to raise more money and inflict its management on another company.