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NEWS
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
June 6, 2007

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Giles Cheek, Director, European Capital Services [phone]
Fergus Hall, Investment Director, European Capital Services [phone]
Brian Maney, Director, Corporate Communications [phone]
EUROPEAN CAPITAL INVESTS €337 MILLION IN ONE STOP BUYOUT™ OF
HILLARYS BLINDS

London - June 6, 2007 - European Capital S.A. SICAR, a wholly-owned subsidiary of European Capital Limited (LSE: ECAS), announced today that it has invested €337 million ($454 million) in the One Stop Buyout™ of Hillarys Blinds Limited from Change Capital Partners LLP. Hillarys is the UK’s leading provider of made-to-measure window blinds. European Capital’s investment takes the form of equity, loan notes, mezzanine debt and senior term loans. Hillarys management is investing in equity and loan notes. Post close, European Capital owns approximately 52% of the Company on a fully-diluted basis.

“This is European Capital’s seventh One Stop Buyout™ and the fourth led by our London office. We have again demonstrated our ability to quickly conduct thorough due diligence and close a transaction in a timely manner by providing all of the capital for the transaction,” said Ira Wagner, President of European Capital Financial Services Limited ("European Capital Services"), the sub-investment manager of European Capital, and Chief Operating Officer of American Capital Strategies, Ltd. “We will be refinancing the senior debt in the transaction very quickly".

European Capital has invested approximately €1.6 billion ($2.2 billion) in the last twelve months, €764 million ($1 billion) year to date and €498 million ($670 million) quarter to date. For more information about European Capital’s portfolio, click here.

“We are investing in a rapidly growing company that already has a commanding share of the growing made-to-measure segment of the blinds market," said Giles Cheek, European Capital Director. “We are also supporting a very strong management team that has the knowledge and drive to build further on this excellent platform.”

“The scale of Hillarys’ business is such that it facilitates cost leadership and high margins, while also offering excellent value for money to its customers,” said Fergus Hall, European Capital Investment Director. “The in-home sales, measuring and fitting service that Hillarys delivers to its customers through its advisor network is an outstanding consumer proposition, which has increasingly underpinned the Company’s growth in an ever more service oriented market.”

Founded in 1971, Hillarys is the leading provider of made-to-measure (MTM) blinds in the UK. The Company’s wide range of MTM products includes roman, venetian, roller and vertical blinds. It also provides specialist products including conservatory blinds, shutters and awnings. Hillarys sells direct to consumers through a direct sales force and the web, to trade customers under the brand name Arena and to non-residential commercial customers through a separate division, Hcd. Hillarys is headquartered in Nottingham, UK and has assembly facilities in Nottingham and Washington, UK. It employs over 1000 people and also has a team of over 900 self-employed sales advisors.

“We are delighted that European Capital is investing in Hillarys,” said John Risman, Hillarys Blinds CEO. “European Capital quickly understood the strengths of the business and the numerous avenues for future growth and assembled an unbeatable financing package.”

“We are proud of what we have been able to achieve with Hillarys,” said Steven Petrow, Change Capital Partners Managing Director. “We have successfully sold a fantastic company with a great management team and excellent growth prospects. We identified early on several opportunities to improve the Hillarys business and to further strengthen the Company’s position as market leader and are pleased to have been able to support management in delivering the improvements.”
ABOUT EUROPEAN CAPITAL

European Capital is a closed-end investment company for pan-European equity, mezzanine and senior debt investments with capital resources of approximately €2.1 billion ($2.9 billion). European Capital invests in and sponsors management and employee buyouts, invests in private equity buyouts and provides capital directly to private and public companies headquartered predominantly in Europe. European Capital generally invests between €5 million and €500 million per transaction in equity, mezzanine debt and senior debt to fund growth, acquisitions and recapitalizations.

Companies interested in learning more about European Capital's flexible financing should contact Simon Henderson or Nathalie Faure Beaulieu in London at + 44 (0)20 7539 7000, Jean Eichenlaub at + 33 (0)1 40 68 06 66 in Paris, or Robert von Finckenstein at [phone] in Frankfurt or visit the website at www.EuropeanCapital.com.
ABOUT AMERICAN CAPITAL

American Capital Strategies Ltd. (Nasdaq: ACAS), an affiliate of European Capital, is the second largest U.S. publicly traded alternative asset manager with approximately $11 billion in assets under management (second to Fortress (NYSE: FIG)). American Capital, both directly and through its global asset management business, is an investor in management and employee buyouts, private equity buyouts, and early stage and mature private and public companies. American Capital provides senior debt, mezzanine debt and equity to fund growth, acquisitions, recapitalizations and securitizations. American Capital and its affiliates invest from $5 million to $800 million per company in North America and €5 million to €500 million per company in Europe.

This press release contains forward-looking statements. The statements regarding expected results of European Capital and/or American Capital are subject to various factors and uncertainties, including the uncertainties associated with the timing of transaction closings, changes in interest rates, availability of transactions, changes in regional, national or international economic conditions, or changes in the conditions of the industries in which European Capital and/or American Capital has made investments.

This announcement is neither an offer to sell nor a solicitation to buy securities.
This announcement appears as a matter of record only.

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[hardman]

OH SH1T!!

[blindmansam]

hardman said:

OH SH1T!!

London - Paris - New York- Venus ! Everyones Talkin' bout .....

Hillary's .......(god i,m Bored - Every 2 or 3 years - Same Sh!te!)

[loneranger]

blindmansam said:

hardman said:

OH SH1T!!

London - Paris - New York- Venus ! Everyones Talkin' bout .....

Hillary's .......(god i,m Bored - Every 2 or 3 years - Same Sh!te!)

I don't see any mention of Peckham there.

Does that mean Del Boy's not involved ?

[inkjet]

The interesting part is that THe Margins are High one of the reasons they invested.

Congratulations to all you commited advisors who work 6 and half days a week for making this possible.

I now hope you get your fair share of these high margins

[thealloydgang]

inkjet said:

The interesting part is that THe Margins are High one of the reasons they invested.

Congratulations to all you commited advisors who work 6 and half days a week for making this possible.

I now hope you get your fair share of these high margins

Sorry, had to respond to this, and probably get slated for boasting, but I've had a relaxing week, and earned approx £900 from 3 leads!

Definately don't work 6.5 days and never would!!!

[blindmansam]

loneranger said:

blindmansam said:

London - Paris - New York- Venus ! Everyones Talkin' bout .....

Hillary's .......(god i,m Bored - Every 2 or 3 years - Same Sh!te!)

I don't see any mention of Peckham there.




Does that mean Del Boy's not involved ?

Del Boy in fact runs the COMMERCIAL part of the group ! Another division we knew nothing about!

[blindmansam]

thealloydgang said:

inkjet said:

The interesting part is that THe Margins are High one of the reasons they invested.

Congratulations to all you commited advisors who work 6 and half days a week for making this possible.

I now hope you get your fair share of these high margins

Sorry, had to respond to this, and probably get slated for boasting, but I've had a relaxing week, and earned approx £900 from 3 leads!

Definately don't work 6.5 days and never would!!!

No orders through Hillarys then ! - Am Shocked!

[Augustus]

thealloydgang said:

Sorry, had to respond to this, and probably get slated for boasting, but I've had a relaxing week, and earned approx £900 from 3 leads!

Definately don't work 6.5 days and never would!!!

I think the life of a specialist is the way to go.

[thealloydgang]

blindmansam said:

thealloydgang said:

Sorry, had to respond to this, and probably get slated for boasting, but I've had a relaxing week, and earned approx £900 from 3 leads!

Definately don't work 6.5 days and never would!!!

No orders through Hillarys then ! - Am Shocked!

Don't quite understand what you mean. The sales were 2 con roofs and 1 awning all through Hillarys. Had a few other normal blind appts and sold at most of them too. So had a really good week, earnt a good wage, through selling just Hillarys blinds and also had a lot of time for myself and my family.

Looking forward to many more days during the summer drinking pimms in the garden and doing the occasional lead or two. Certainly suits me down..........couldn't think of a better job at the moment.

[ascreaton]

Go Karen, you can make good money with Hillarys you are the proof

Ade

[ascreaton]

Hi again
Have just returned from roof blind course, I think the people in the training department do an outstanding job, if Colin, Steve or Lorraine Hall ever left then it would be time to leave Hillarys, they are a great team and are a credit to the company, I spoke to Colin about the need for a Speacilist person to cover areas to sort out DOR's and customer complaints, this would be the way forward, as advisors are mainly sales and fitting orientated and have little spare time to provide the customer service required, I myself feel I fall down in this area, and know I cannot give the customer the sort of service expected after spending hundreds and thousands of pounds on blinds, a DOR man would pay for himself many times over, let alone the solid customer service reputation the company would gain that cannot be quantified in Currency, but in a killer reputation that Hillarys never left a customer wishing they had never brought blinds from them, if the DOR man had any spare time they could be utilised in training new advisors, it has got to be worth the investment, all advisors feel on thier own when things go wrong but with a good back up Hillarys could destroy the competition, some things are greater than money and reputation and after service support is one of those things, and a big thank you to all the training TEAM
Ade

[blindmansam]

thealloydgang said:

blindmansam said:

No orders through Hillarys then ! - Am Shocked!

Don't quite understand what you mean. The sales were 2 con roofs and 1 awning all through Hillarys. Had a few other normal blind appts and sold at most of them too. So had a really good week, earnt a good wage, through selling just Hillarys blinds and also had a lot of time for myself and my family.

Looking forward to many more days during the summer drinking pimms in the garden and doing the occasional lead or two. Certainly suits me down..........couldn't think of a better job at the moment.

Are you on commission or something ?

[blindmansam]

ascreaton said:

Hi again
Have just returned from roof blind course, I think the people in the training department do an outstanding job, if Colin, Steve or Lorraine Hall ever left then it would be time to leave Hillarys, they are a great team and are a credit to the company, I spoke to Colin about the need for a Speacilist person to cover areas to sort out DOR's and customer complaints, this would be the way forward, as advisors are mainly sales and fitting orientated and have little spare time to provide the customer service required, I myself feel I fall down in this area, and know I cannot give the customer the sort of service expected after spending hundreds and thousands of pounds on blinds, a DOR man would pay for himself many times over, let alone the solid customer service reputation the company would gain that cannot be quantified in Currency, but in a killer reputation that Hillarys never left a customer wishing they had never brought blinds from them, if the DOR man had any spare time they could be utilised in training new advisors, it has got to be worth the investment, all advisors feel on thier own when things go wrong but with a good back up Hillarys could destroy the competition, some things are greater than money and reputation and after service support is one of those things, and a big thank you to all the training TEAM
Ade

And you think the training team read this forum? You would be better off writting a letter to Hillarys to put your idea's forward .

Shame they will not listen , and it would be completely wasted on your FSM !

[ascreaton]

They may not read the forum but will copy this onto the official site as well, went to the pleated production area and was amazed how hands on it was
Ade