Imperial Capital Advises Shred-it on Its Recapitalization With Birch Hill Equity Partners and Westerkirk Capital

LOS ANGELES, CA--(Marketwire - June 12, 2009) - Imperial Capital announced today the closing of the recapitalization of Shred-it International, Inc. ("Shred-it" or "the Company"). Imperial Capital initiated the transaction and acted as sole financial advisor to the Company. Birch Hill Equity Partners was the lead equity sponsor along with Westerkirk Capital. National Bank of Canada and Toronto Dominion Bank led the senior financing for the transaction.

Shred-it, based in Ontario, Canada, is the market leading provider of on-site document destruction services and records retention information management. The company was founded in 1988 by Greg Brophy, who built the Company into one of the world's leading on-site document destruction companies. Today, Shred-it services more than 150,000 clients on 5 continents from over 140 locations. The Brophy family continues to own a significant stake in the Company and will remain on the Board of Directors following the recapitalization.

"Imperial Capital was engaged by the Company due to their significant relationships and experience with middle market companies and private equity funds in successfully executing mergers & acquisitions, capital markets, and restructuring transactions," said Tracey Brophy, owner of Shred-it.

Dave Samuel, Senior Partner at Birch Hill Equity Partners, said, "We are proud to be partners with the management team and the Brophy family at Shred-it and support the company's continuing expansion."

Robert Warshauer, the Managing Director and Head of New York Corporate Finance at Imperial Capital who initiated and led the transaction, added, "We were pleased to have an opportunity to work with Shred-it and the Brophy family in structuring an optimal transaction for all parties and identifying great equity partners, Birch Hill Equity Partners and Westerkirk Capital." John E. Mack III, Managing Director, and Co-Head of Corporate Finance at Imperial Capital who also worked on the transaction with Warshauer, stated, "This transaction showcased Imperial's ability to lead work on complex mergers and acquisitions for larger middle market companies with very positive outcomes for our clients."

Michael Amm from Torys in Toronto and Robert F. Kennedy from Jones Day in New York represented the Company on the legal side.

About Imperial Capital, LLC

Imperial Capital, founded in 1997, is a full-service investment banking firm with offices in Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco. The firm currently employs over 160 professionals and offers a wide range of proprietary products and services to institutional investors, middle market companies, and private equity firms. Imperial Capital's investment banking group provides capital markets, M&A, and restructuring and recapitalization advisory services to middle market companies and private equity firms. Imperial Capital provides research and sales and trading of high yield and distressed debt securities, bank debt, convertible bonds, preferred stocks, and equities. More information about Imperial Capital and its investment banking services can be found at www.imperialcapital.com.

About Birch Hill Equity Partners

With $1.7 billion in capital under management and 20 partner companies, Birch Hill Equity Partners is the leader in long-term value creation in the Canadian mid-market private equity business. Birch Hill Fund III closed in August 2005 with over $850 million of committed capital from leading Canadian, American, and European investors. The 21 member team at Birch Hill Equity Partners has many years of experience working together as active partners with top management teams in building long term value. Since 1994 the team has invested $1.3 billion of capital in 42 transactions.

About Westerkirk Capital

At Westerkirk Capital, our goal is to build and own great businesses over the long-term. Our focus lies on providing business owners with the capital and expertise to facilitate a clear succession plan and to pursue growth opportunities that reflect their values and aspirations. Because Westerkirk manages private capital for a single Canadian Investor, we are not bound by short-term return expectations. Instead, we are able to take a much longer view of investment opportunities, and position ourselves to build and maintain solid, profitable businesses. As such, we represent an alternative to the traditional private equity market for entrepreneurial owners seeking a long-term business partner.