Shutterfly in talks to be made public through the SPAC merger

Some of the people said any agreement could be in a few weeks, and there is no guarantee that the parties will reach an agreement. If they did, I would add Shutterfly to the long list of companies involved in a recent explosion of SPAC-related deals, which raise money in a public offering with plans to later find one or more companies to merge with.

The Altimar vehicle went public in February and raised $ 345 million to make a deal, which as is typical would likely include additional privately raised funds. An earlier vehicle, Altimar Acquisition Corp., agreed last year to combine two investment firms and make them public in a $ 12.5 billion deal that was then one of the largest blank check transactions.

Founded in 1999, the eponymous Shutterfly brand helps consumers print their photos on personalized books and gift items. The company owns Lifetouch, which does school photography and manages portrait studios, and also has a digital printing arm for businesses. It began going public in 2006. Apollo bought the company in 2019 for about $ 2.6 billion including debt and then combined it with Snapfish LLC to create a larger player in online photography services.

Prior to Shutterfly’s leveraged purchase, its outlook had faded as online photography services became ubiquitous and competitors with extensive resources, including Google Photos, stole market share. But the demand for photographic souvenirs has increased since the pandemic hit about a year ago and made people nostalgic for past trips and special occasions such as weddings and graduations. One person said Shutterfly’s revenue growth, which was roughly flat when it was bought by Apollo, is now in double digits.

Potentially added to the appeal of a public listing for Shutterfly and its sponsors shares of e-commerce companies such as Chewy Pet Food Retailer Inc.

and Etsy craft market Inc.

they have performed well during the pandemic. Moonpig Group PLC, the UK equivalent of Shutterfly, went public last month.

SPACs have been an advantage for private equity firms, offering a streamlined alternative to an initial public offering for their portfolio firms. A steady stream of privately held companies have agreed to go public through SPAC mergers since the blank check frenzy took hold on Wall Street in the past two years. Carlyle Group Inc.

is looking at a SPAC deal for Syniverse Technologies LLC that could turn the ten-year investment fortune upside down, people who were familiar with the matter said earlier this week.

Write to Cara Lombardo to [email protected] and Miriam Gottfried to [email protected]