Watermill Advisors & Watermill Ventures Expand Executive Team.

Business Editors

WALTHAM, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 3, 2004

Watermill Advisors, a strategic advisory firm, and Watermill Ventures, a private strategic investment firm, announce the addition of Brett L'Esperance to their executive team. In his role as Principal, L'Esperance

Most recently, L'Esperance was Vice President of Investor Group Services (IGS), a provider of market diligence and strategy consulting services to middle-market private equity funds and their portfolio companies. Prior to joining IGS, he was an Operating Principal and Assistant to the CEO of Modern Holdings, a private equity fund, where he implemented financial and operational controls across 12 portfolio companies and served as interim management and board member for several of these companies.

"Our Advisory business is growing steadily due to the market's increasing desire for advisors with more hands-on strategic and operational experience. Brett's background in strategy consulting and portfolio management, as well as his experience in principal investing, helps us to meet this demand," said Steven Karol, Managing Partner and Founder of Watermill Advisors and Watermill Ventures. "His diverse background as well as his entrepreneurial roots give Watermill further strength to grow our Advisory business. He will also be an important addition to our strategic and analytical team, which will help us continue to effectively make sound investment decisions."

"I'm excited about joining a group that has successfully invested capital over the last 25 years. This success has been borne directly from the intense strategy development process through which Watermill leads each of its portfolio companies. The Advisory business serves as a natural extension of this success in helping other middle-market businesses achieve their growth and profitability goals," said L'Esperance. "I look forward to contributing my efforts to Watermill Ventures' continuing investment success, as well as establishing winning strategies and operating techniques that benefit our portfolio companies and Watermill Advisors' clientele."

L'Esperance holds a B.A. in Operations Research & Finance from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School. He is also an active member of the Boston Chapter of the Association for Corporate Growth (ACG).

About Watermill Ventures and Watermill Advisors

Watermill Ventures is a private strategic investment firm which focuses on transforming challenged companies into sound and profitable investments. Leveraging over 25 years of experience, Watermill Ventures focuses on the acquisition of middle-market companies in turnaround and workout situations. Watermill offers a proven investment niche with its commitment to the process of developing and implementing strategies that turn companies around and position them for long-term success. For more information please visit www.watermill.com.

Watermill Advisors is a strategic advisory firm which provides both healthy and distressed companies with strategy development, interim and crisis management and merchant and investment banking services. Watermill's consulting practice leverages years of operational experience combining powerful management theories with fact-based, executable strategies using proven models. For more information please visit www.watermill.com.