DAVID JOHNSON TO BE NAMED CHAIRMAN AND CEO OF KINDERCARE
Montgomery, Al , December, 4, 1996, KinderCare Learning Centers, Inc.
(NASDQ:KCLC) and KCLC Acquisition Corp., an affiliate of Kohlberg Kravis
Roberts & Co., announced today that David J. Johnson, 50, will succeed
Sandra W. Scarr, Ph.D., as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, upon the
closing of the acquisition of KinderCare by KCLC Acquisition Corp., which
is anticipated to be in early 1997. Dr. Scarr, 60, who announced her intention
to retire upon the closing of the acquisition, will continue at the Company
as a member of the Board of Directors. Mr. Johnson was most recently Chairman
and Chief Executive Officer of Red Lion Hotels, Inc. The closing of the
acquisition of KinderCare remains subject to the satisfaction of a number
of conditions.
A KinderCare spokesman said, “We would like to thank Dr. Scarr for her
contributions to the Company. We wish her well and look forward to her
continued role on the Board of Directors.”
“KinderCare has established itself as the leading provider of proprietary
child care in the United States and is poised to embark on what we believe
will be a period of major growth,” said Mr. Johnson. “I look forward to
joining KinderCare’s fine management team and to building on KinderCare’s
strong foundation.”
“My first priority will be to gain a deep understanding of the people
and practices that have made KinderCare such a success. Following the transition,
I will be focused on further enhancing the high quality of our programs
and facilities; supporting the management team and staff in developing
innovative new programs; and working hard to take advantage of the significant
opportunities for new growth -- both internally and through acquisitions
-- that we see in the marketplace.”
Prior to joining Red Lion in September 1991, Mr. Johnson was a general
partner of Hellman & Friedman, a private equity investment firm. From
1986 to 1988, Mr. Johnson served as President, Chief Operating Officer
and Director of Dillingham Holdings, a diversified company with $2 billion
in revenues. Mr. Johnson also has nine years experience in the consulting
business working with a number of multi-unit service and retail businesses.
He holds a degree from the University of Oregon and the University of Southern
California Graduate School of Business. KinderCare is the largest provider
of proprietary child care in the United States. At the end of the first
quarter of fiscal 1997, under the banners of KinderCare Learning Centers,
Inc., KinderCare at Work and Kids Choice, KinderCare operated
1,151 centers in 38 states and the United Kingdom with an enrollment of
approximately 126,000 children and employed over 23,000 people. Children’s
education programs include: toddler programs Look at Me! and Let
Me Do It!; preschool programs My Window on the World and Once
Upon a Time...; and the schoolage program KC Imagination Highway.
KinderCare was founded in 1969 and is headquartered in Montgomery, Alabama.
CONTACT: Thomas D. Johnson, Jr., Director of Marketing and Investor
Relations, 334-277-5090 or Philip L. Maslowe, Executive Vice President
and Chief Financial Officer.
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