Petco Animal Supplies, Inc. ("Petco" or "the Company"), a leading specialty retailer of premium pet food, supplies and services, announced today that funds affiliated with CVC Capital Partners ("CVC") and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board ("CPPIB") have entered into a definitive agreement to jointly acquire the Company from a group of investors led by TPG and Leonard Green & Partners ("LGP") for approximately $4.6 billion. The acquisition is expected to close in early 2016.

Based in San Diego, Petco is a leading specialty retailer of premium pet food, supplies and services. The company operates more than 1,400 Petco locations across the U.S., Mexico and Puerto Rico, along with one of the leading e-commerce platforms in the pet industry.

"We are very excited to partner with CVC and CPPIB to further drive our strategic goal of being the trusted partner of choice for pet parents," said James M. Myers, Chief Executive Officer. "As the North American pet industry continues to grow, Petco is well positioned with a strong brand, differentiated engagement model, and omnichannel strategy. Both CVC and CPPIB have outstanding track records and deep retail experience and resources that will help support our growth initiatives."

Myers continued, "I'd like to thank TPG and LGP for their long-standing partnership. We have grown significantly under their ownership, and built one of the industry's leading pet specialty retailers."

"Petco is clearly a leader in the industry, with strong further growth potential and a talented leadership team," said Chris Stadler, CVC Managing Partner. "The pet category is a growing and dynamic space within which we believe Petco is ideally positioned to further enhance its leadership position. We look forward to working with our outstanding partners at CPPIB to support the company's growth as it continues to execute its strategy and plans to capitalise on promising market opportunities."

"This investment aligns well with CPPIB's strategy to invest in leading retail businesses with strong omnichannel capabilities. Petco has a well-known brand and a strong position in the U.S. pet sector. The company has long-term relationships with leading pet food vendors and a significant presence in the fast growing e-commerce channel," said Shane Feeney, Managing Director, Head of Direct Private Equity, CPPIB. "We look forward to working alongside one of our long-standing partners, CVC, to leverage our collective retail expertise in helping to build further value in the business."

"We are so proud to have been part of Petco's journey over a span of 16 years," said Carrie Wheeler, Partner of TPG. "Petco has delivered incredible growth and results over our ownership period, and has positioned itself as a leading retailer in the pet industry that continues to define the category by finding new and innovative ways to serve its customers. We cannot thank the Petco team enough for their partnership, and wish them great success in this next chapter."

"We are delighted to have been associated with the Petco team over many years of uninterrupted progress and success and we are tremendously appreciative of CEO Jim Myers and retired CEO & Chairman Emeritus, Brian Devine, and the rest of the Petco team for the outstanding job they've done for our investors," said John G. Danhakl, Managing Partner of LGP. "We wish for and expect continued success for the entire Petco family supported by CVC and CPPIB, two of the best in our business."

Goldman, Sachs & Co. and J.P. Morgan Securities LLC are acting as financial advisors to Petco. Ropes & Gray acted as legal counsel to Petco. Barclays, Citigroup and Moelis acted as lead financial advisors to CVC and CPPIB. Barclays, Citigroup, Barclays, Royal Bank of Canada, Credit Suisse, Nomura and Macquarie provided committed debt financing to CVC and CPPIB. Gibson Dunn acted as legal counsel to CVC and CPPIB. CPPIB was also separately advised by Torys LLP. The acquisition is subject to customary closing conditions.