GERMANY - Texas Pacific Group defends Grohe PR disaster

In a dinner speech at the Handesblatt Private Equity Conference, Frankfurt on 9 May, Andrew Dechet of Texas Pacific Group justified the investor's much criticised restructuring of the beleaguered Grohe. Dechet, from the US, delivered his speech in German, jesting 'I don't find it easy to pronounce the word 'locust'. The reference arose early last year when the US-headquartered financial investor's takeover of Grohe from BC Partners sparked a public attack from SPD minister for Nordrhein Westphalia, Franz Müntefering. The politician was quoted in German newspaper 'Die Welt' as labelling foreign private investors asset-strippers, doing damage to the German economy.