LAW firm Dickinson Dees has acted for the management of Attends Healthcare, an international manufacturer and supplier of adult incontinence care products in Europe, on its 180m sale to Canadian based Domtar Corporation.

Attends is represented in more than 20 countries in Europe, the Middle East and Australasia and has a world-class manufacturing, research and development and distribution facility in Aneby, Sweden. The business was formerly part of Procter & Gamble, who disposed of the European and North American business to management in 1999.

Private equity house 3i funded a management buyout in 2002, and the North American business was sold in 2006, followed by a secondary buyout to fund managers, Rutland Partners in 2007.

Domtar, a Montreal-based company listed on the New York Stock Exchange with a market cap of $3.22bn, plans to double earnings within the next five years as demand for incontinence care products in Europe grows.

Domtar bought the North American Attends business in 2011 and so this deal reunites the former group under common ownership. Attends has 413 employees, estimated annual run rate sales and earnings of 140m and 123m respectively.

James Steele, chief executive officer, led the management team, which includes COO Tim Sale (formerly of Teesside-based Stadium Group) and CFO Andy Biggs.

The team at Dickinson Dees, which has an office in Thornaby, was led by corporate partner Tom Fitzpatrick.

Tim Sale of Attends said: “Dickinson Dees helped us with Rutland’s investment back in 2007 and the associated exit from 3i. When Domtar approached us with a view to buying the business, we knew Tom’s team would help us achieve a good deal.”

Tom added: “We first came across James and his team when 3i invested in 2002 and managed the Rutland deal in 2002 on their behalf. It was great to help them achieve a fantastic result on their investment and deliver a platform for future growth.”