PEP June 2017-1

June 2017

June 2017 Private equity’s news leader since 2007 www.pepdigest.com

IN THIS ISSUE Column Title Here?

The Lead 1 If you’re active in healthcare take note
that investment bank ROTH Capital
Feature Articles x-x Partners has hired Eric Cheng as a new continue in his current position and remains a
Managing Director and Head of Healthcare significant shareholder in the company. Peter
New Funds x-x Investment Banking. Eric, who has over 20 Shabecoff, Atlantic Street’s founder and
years of investment banking experience and Managing Partner, led the transaction.
Platforms x-x was previously with Maxim Group, will be
Add-Ons & Exits working out of ROTH’s New York office. Congrats to Jake Petoskey on his new position
as a Principal with Chicago-based Parker-
Senior & Mezzanine Align Capital Partners is building its industrial Gale. Jake will be active with investment
Financings x-x emissions testing services platform, Alliance due diligence and operational improvements
Source Testing, with the add-on buy of the and growth initiatives with portfolio compa-
Movers & Shakers x-x stack testing operations of Golden Specialty. nies. Prior to ParkerGale he was with Welsh,
This is the first add-on acquisition since AST Carson, Anderson & Stowe. Late last year
ABOUT US was acquired by Align in October 2016. The ParkerGale closed its debut fund above target
transaction, led by Managing Partner Rob at $240 million.
Private Equity Professional has been Langley, gives AST a national footprint of nine
serving the private equity industry since offices across Alabama, Arkansas, Texas, Penn- Blue Sage Capital has joined forces with
2007 and is published by Sun Business sylvania, Utah, Washington and Iowa. industry exec John Gustafson and Trailcreek
Media, LLC. So if you got a smoky stack just contact Align. Capital Group to form Frontier Waste Hold-
Private Equity Professional is published ings to start a roll-up in the waste removal
monthly in a print and digital version. Fertitta Capital has been launched with a services sector. The new platform has
The website of Private Equity $500 million capital commitment by the acquired Access Disposal Services and K2
Professional is updated daily and reports on brothers Fertitta—Frank and Lorenzo—to make Waste Solutions which service metro areas in
and analyzes the most important private investments in consumer-facing technology, Texas and Arizona. Frontier Waste is based in
equity news of the day. We also publish media and entertainment companies. The Dallas. Peter Huff, Co-Founder and Managing
Morning Coffee, a digital private equity family fortune originates from casino prop- Member, leads the roll-up for Blue Sage.
news bulletin which is delivered via email erties started by their father Frank Fertitta
to our members each Jr. (he worked his way from the bottom up After growing the revenues of K&H Pet
business day. beginning as a dealer in 1960 at the Stardust Products by a factor of 6 over a ten year
Annually we produce the Carried Casino) and his sons Frank and Lorenzo would ownership term, Benford Capital has sold
Interest and Compensation Survey. This later acquire (in 2001) the Ultimate Fighting the company to publicly traded Central
survey is now in its ninth year and has Championship (UFC), a mixed martial arts Garden & Pet. The big revenue growth is
become a leading source of information on promotion and live event provider, which amazing since it was all organic (the best and
compensation amounts and trends in the they sold in 2016 to entertainment, sports cheapest kind) and came through a combi-
private equity industry. and fashion company WME (Silver Lake and nation of new products, the build of a sales
Staff KKR are investors in WME). Running the whole team that acquired new customers, and entry
Publisher: John McNulty show for Fertitta Capital is Nakisa Bidarian into e-commerce. Benford, based in Chicago,
VP Member Services: Carolyn Brinker who will lead the firm as CEO. For more on invests in lower middle market companies
Webmaster: Eric Green this see today’s lead news article. that have revenues of at least $3 million and
Address EBITDA of at least $1 million. Benford’s
Private Equity Professional After reviewing a number of opportunities in partner on this transaction was Concord,
c/o Sun Business Media the aviation ground services space, Atlantic MA-based Coppermine Capital. For more
P.O. Box 6610 Street has found its latest platform with the see our lead transaction article today.
Evanston, IL 60204 buy of GAT Airline Ground Support. GAT pro-
Website vides its services—aircraft ground handling, In another public company transaction,
www.pepdigest.com baggage, ticketing and check-in, equipment Riverside Partners has agreed to sell Thin-
Telephone maintenance and fueling—to 37 airports klogical —a developer and maker of fiber-op-
847-337-3123 throughout the United States. Atlantic Street tic-based video and switching equipment—to
acquired its majority interest in GAT from the Belden for $160 million. Riverside acquired
founding Raines family. CEO Boe Strange will a majority interest in Thinklogical in March
2010. Thinklogical had revenues of $51 mil-
lion in 2016 with an adjusted EBITDA of $17

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 1 June 2017

Column title here?

million (that’s a nice EBITDA margin). This results in a purchase making with St. George Logistics, a platform company the firm
price multiple of 9.4x. acquired in September 2016 from Ironwood Capital.

New Mountain Capital has made a big vertical integration Hermitage Equity and Greyrock Capital have purchased Bentec
move in the laboratory supplies category by having its portfolio Medical, a maker of silicone-based medical devices such as
company Avantor agreeing to buy publicly traded VWR for $6.4 tubing and bags. The two firms acquired assets on this trans-
billion. VWR is one of the two largest distributors of equipment action—which is generally the best way to go especially when
and consumables to the laboratory sector while Avantor is a there might be some nasty liabilities (yes, known and unknown)
manufacturer of materials and chemicals used in pharmaceu- lurking about. From my research the morning, the founder of
tical, biopharmaceutical, laboratory, research and electronics Bentec had some tax issues with the government—something to
applications. Fully committed financing of the acquisition has do with unfiled and unpaid taxes at a time when lots of income
been provided by Goldman Sachs, Barclays, and Jefferies. VWR was generated. I’m sure my friends at Hermitage and Greyrock
has been a portfolio company of Madison Dearborn Partners were extra diligent on this deal and read the seller’s reps &
since it acquired the company from Clayton, Dubilier & Rice warranties and indemnification sections very carefully.
in 2007.
In other news, if you’re in need of equity capital for your next
In transaction news, after just a 1.5 year hold GenNx360 (I still deal, take note that Houlihan Lokey’s capital markets group
don’t get that name - maybe someone can explain to me) has has added Heather Smith as a new Managing Director and Head
sold Truck Bodies and Equipment International (yes they make of Structured Equity. Heather is based in New York and comes
truck bodies) to Federal Signal for $270 million. TTM results to HL after 3 years at Sagent Advisors. Earlier in her career she
ending March 2017 had TBEI revenues at $206 million and was with Deutsche Bank, Greentech Capital, and Credit Suisse.
EBITDA at $37 million. Do the math and you get a purchase
price multiple of just under 7.3x. KPS Capital Partners has agreed to acquire TaylorMade from
Adidas for $425 million, half of which is cash and the rest is a
Congrats to Tecum Capital on reaching a first close at a fully combination of payments under seller financing and contingent
subscribed $225 million on the firm’s second SBIC fund. payments. Last year, sales for TaylorMade were about $970
Tecum—based in the Pittsburgh suburb of Wexford—invests from million which is down big from $1.5 billion in 2012. No surprise
$3 million to $15 million of sub debt and equity in companies here though as the whole industry is in decline. Nike announced
that have revenues of $8 million to $100 million and EBITDA in August 2016 that it was exiting the golf equipment business
of at least $2 million. Stephen Gurgovits, Jr. leads the team (still selling shoes and clothing) and a month later Golfsmith,
at Tecum. the world’s largest golf retailer, filed for Chapter 11 bankrupt-
cy. Golf participation has been on a slow and steady decline
CIC Partners will look to buy food ingredient companies and has for two decades and participation by millennials is particularly
partnered with industry exec Randy Cimorelli to make this hap- weak. KPS specializes in restructurings and turnarounds so this
pen. Randy is the former CEO of ingredient broker and distribu- looks like a two-some made in heaven.
tor Mac & Massey (a former portfolio company of Chicago-based
High Street Capital which was sold in 2012 to Batory Foods). He In other deal news, Clio Holdings, a platform of O2 Investment
left Batory just over two years ago in April 2015. Two years is Partners, Oakland Standard, and Tecum Capital, has complet-
an interesting length of time from a non-compete perspective, ed its sixth add-on acquisition as it looks to consolidate the
but what do I know. countertop supply and fabrication industry. Clio now has more
than $100 million in annual sales, nearly 1,000 employees, and
Through a new company called Congruex, Crestview Partners 17 locations across the US. A big bet on the new housing and
has teamed up with industry veterans Bill Beans and Kevin remodeling market for sure. g
O’Hara to consolidate the fragmented engineering and con-
struction services industry, particularly in the communications
and utility infrastructure space. Brian Cassidy, a Partner at
Crestview and head of the firm’s media activities, is leading
the effort. Crestview already has a number of transactions in
the pipeline and will now pursue them under the Congruex
umbrella.

Congrats to Kathleen Thomas, the newest managing director at
media investment bank JEGI. Kathleen is well-known in the me-
dia space (I’ve looked at a number of her deals) and she is both
an expert and a pleasure to work with. She comes to JEGI from
Drake Star Partners and before that Berkery Noyes and Veronis
Suhler Stevenson (all big hitters in the media space).
Lastly, if you’re in the logistics space, be sure to check out our
article today on the last-mile move that Wind Point Partners is

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 2 June 2017

Platforms, Add-Ons & Exits June 2017

Linsalata Adds-on to RANDYS Worldwide

RANDYS Worldwide Automotive, a portfolio company of Linsalata Capital Partners, has acquired Zumbrota Bearing
& Gear. RANDYS was acquired by Linsalata in May 2015.

Zumbrota Bearing & Gear (ZBAG) is a supplier of new, used, and remanufactured manual
transmissions, transfer cases, and differentials. The company also provides components for
rebuilding and repair. ZBAG, with approximately 40 employees, has a 60,000 square foot
manufacturing facility and headquarters in Zumbrota, MN (www.zbag.com).

RANDYS is a provider of differentials, ring & pinion and axle products that are used to improve
the towing and traction performance of a vehicle. The company sells over 6,000 SKU’s under the
Yukon and USA Standard brands to a customer base of 20,000 installers, distributors and retailers
serving the repair, off-road and performance segments. RANDYS is led by its President and CEO
Kevin Kaestner, and is headquartered in Everett, WA (www.ringpinion.com).

“We are pleased to close our first
acquisition for the RANDYS Worldwide
platform which will significantly extend
the company’s product breadth and
geographical reach,” said James Guddy,
Principal of Linsalata Capital Partners.
“This acquisition advances the company’s
position as a leader in the automotive
aftermarket and we continue to seek opportunities to further
build the RANDYS Worldwide platform.”

Linsalata Capital Partners invests from $10 million
to $50 million of equity in middle market
companies that have $7 million to $50 million of
EBITDA and at least $300 million in enterprise
value. The firm is currently investing from its
seventh fund, Linsalata Capital Partners Fund VI,
LP, with $427 million in committed equity capital.
The firm was founded in 1984 and is based near
Cleveland in Mayfield Heights, OH (www.linsalatacapital.com). g

“This acquisition advances the company’s position
as a leader in the automotive aftermarket
and we continue to seek opportunities

to further build the RANDYS Worldwide platform.”

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 3 June 2017

Platforms, Add Ons, and Exits

Align Adds-on to Alliance

Alliance Source Testing, a portfolio company of Align Capital Partners, has acquired
the stack testing operations of Golden Specialty.

Golden Specialty, founded in 1997, provides source that have from $3 million to $10
emission (or stack) testing services and lab services million of EBITDA. Sectors of interest
to industrial facilities in the Western US. The company include specialty manufacturing, dis-
has offices in Houston, TX; Cedar Rapids, IA; Bellingham, tribution and business services. The firm was founded in 2016
WA; and Salt Lake City, UT (www.goldenspecialty.com). by managing partners Steve Dyke, Robert Langley, and Chris
Jones—all formerly of The Riverside Company—and has offices
“We are happy to partner with Alliance Source Testing to divest in Cleveland and Dallas (www.aligncp.com).
the stack testing portion of our business,” said Scott Swiggard,
CEO of Golden Specialty. “They are a well-run, focused stack In September 2016, Align held a first and final close of its
testing business that will serve our customers well. We will inaugural private equity investment fund, Align Capital
continue to offer lab services under the name Golden Specialty Partners Fund I, LP, and Align Capital Partners Fund I-A, LP.
and look forward to a renewed focus on that business.” The firm began fundraising in June 2016 with an initial target
of $250 million and closed at its hard cap of $325 million. g
Alliance Source Testing (AST)
provides its emissions testing
services to industrial facilities
for permitting and compliance in
accordance with air-quality mandates from local, state and
federal regulatory bodies. The company services customers’
facilities on a repeated basis, with the frequency determined
by regulations for each industry. AST’s customers are active in
a range of industries including asphalt production; automotive
manufacturing; cement production; chemical manufacturing;
fiberglass; food & beverage; and iron & steel foundry.
The company, led by CEO Chris LeMay, has operations centers
in Decatur, AL (headquarters); Little Rock, AR; Pittsburgh, PA;
West Chester, PA; and Tyler, TX (www.stacktest.com).

The combination of Golden Specialty and AST will create a
company with a national footprint of nine offices across
Alabama, Arkansas, Texas, Pennsylvania, Utah, Washington
and Iowa.

This is AST’s first add-on acquisition since it was acquired by
Align in October 2016. “The Align team looks forward to a
sustained partnership with AST and will continue to invest
in its growth,” said Align Managing Partner Rob Langley.
Align Capital Partners makes control investments in companies

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 4 June 2017

Platforms, Add Ons, and Exits

Corridor Acquires Indo-European Foods

Corridor Capital has acquired Indo-European Foods, a provider of specialty and gourmet foods
to independent, ethnic grocers in the Western US and select national food wholesalers and
retailers. Centerfield Capital Partners partnered with Corridor on this transaction. The seller was Montage
Partners, which acquired Indo-European in partnership with management in August 2012.

Indo-European sources, develops, markets and distributes Centerfield Capital Partners
Eastern European, Mediterranean, North African and South provides from $7 million to
Asian spreads, preserves, condiments, appetizers, cheeses, $35 million of subordinated debt
confections, seasonings and specialty grains and rice. and equity financing to middle market companies that have
Company owned brands include Indo-European, ZerGut, $15 million to $100 million of revenue and $3 million to
Poli-Kala, Al Manara, and Moomtaz. The company was $15 million of EBITDA. The firm is based in Indianapolis
founded in 1966 by Hagop and Alice Bezjian and is based (www.centerfieldcapital.com).
in Glendale, CA (www.indo-euro.com).
“Indo European’s growth and success have been a function
“Indo European’s management has done an exceptional job of of our unwavering commitment to meeting the highest
understanding and meeting the needs of its customers in the standards in quality and safety, providing best in class
continually evolving specialty foods market without ever losing service, and preserving the authenticity of our products.
sight of the authenticity on which the company was built,” said We are delighted to continue on this mission with partners
Craig Enenstein, Corridor’s CEO.
that can offer capital, operational resources
Corridor is expected to work and access to a wealth of experience in food
with Indo-European to expand distribution, retail and manufacturing to
its products, service help us achieve our goals and exceed our
offerings, and customer customers’ expectations,” said Mike Hatun,
base. “We believe that the the Indo European’s CEO.
additional resources that the
company will now have at TCF Capital Funding provided a senior credit
Craig Enenstein its disposal, coupled with facility in connection with this transaction and
the existing management team’s extensive to fund the company’s planned growth.
knowledge of and passion for ethnic and
specialty foods, will help Indo-European Montage Partners, the seller of Indo-European,
continue its long tradition of success and invests in companies in the Western US with
reach new heights,” said Corridor Managing EBITDA between $1 million and $5 million and
Director, Cameron Reilly. enterprise values between $2 million and $20
million. The firm was founded in 2004 and is
Corridor Capital led by Managing Partners Jordan Tate and
makes control Rob Wolfman. Montage Partners is based in
investments of Scottsdale, AZ (www.montagepartners.com). g
$3 million to $12 million in mid-market
companies with EBITDAs of $2 million to
$5 million. Corridor focuses on complex
situations, particularly those requiring
growth support or operational or financial
engagement. Sectors of interest include specialty
manufacturing, business services, and environmental services.
Corridor’s investor base includes approximately 150 executives
across an array of industries and disciplines that the firm uses as
an active resource for its portfolio companies and their teams.
The firm is based in Los Angeles (www.corridorcap.com).

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 5 June 2017

Platforms, Add Ons, and Exits

Pinewell Buys Fogco Systems

Pinewell Capital has acquired Fogco Systems, a manufacturer of high pressure mist
and fog systems sold to the industrial, commercial, and residential markets.

Fogco Systems is one of the original pioneers of high pressure is based in Scottsdale, AZ (www.pinewell Ziv Bendor
fog systems and has developed numerous proprietary products capital.com).“Fogco has been growing rapidly,
for the industry. The company offers a range of products from and together with a shared vision and
entry-level mist systems to custom products that are used for resources, we strongly believe we can
outdoor cooling, industrial humidification, dust suppression, accelerate this growth and enhance our
odor control, and special effects. Products include direct capabilities to deliver solutions to our
drive mist pumps; complex computer controlled pumps; customers’ evolving needs,” added Ziv
directionally adjustable nozzles; cooling and humidification Bendor, Partner at Pinewell Capital.
fans; air injection systems; and automated control systems.
Fogco was founded in 1989 and is based in Chandler, AZ “We are eager to leverage our 29 years of industry experience
(www.fogco.com). combined with the committed resources and support of

“At Pinewell, we seek to partner with

and support companies that lead in their “We are eager to leverage our 29 years
of industry experience combined with
respected fields and share our core values the committed resources and support
of Pinewell Capital.”
stressing people, integrity and continual
Pinewell Capital,” said Gary Wintering, President and CEO
improvement,” said Yuta Matsui, Partner of Fogco. “Pinewell’s extensive business knowledge and
experience will help to further bolster our already fast-growing
at Pinewell Capital. “In Fogco, we found a capabilities and to maintain our company’s primary objective
of being the best company in our space.”
promising company with a great team; from
Investment bank Generational Equity (www.genequityco.com)
Yuta Matsui its president, Gary Wintering, to all its was the financial advisor to Fogco Systems. g

managers and employees.”

Pinewell Capital
invests in companies
with enterprise values
between $2 million and
$50 million or that have EBITDAs of $500,000 to $10 million.
Companies of interest include niche manufacturers, unique
product-based or service-based companies and companies in
the healthcare sector. Pinewell

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 6 June 2017

Platforms, Add Ons, and Exits

Blue Sage Forms Frontier Waste

Blue Sage Capital has partnered with John Gustafson and Trailcreek Capital Group to form Frontier
Waste Holdings in order to acquire Access Disposal Services and K2 Waste Solutions. Frontier will
also acquire other companies in the waste services industry, particularly those located in Texas.

Access Disposal Services provides position is filled by Jake Friemel who Blue Sage Capi-
solid waste removal services to both previously worked at Comerica as a Vice tal specializes in
residential and commercial customers. President in the bank’s Environmental growth, recapital-
The company was founded in 2005 and Services Department. ization and buyout financings of smaller
is based in Hillsboro, TX and serves the middle-market companies based in Texas
city of Hillsboro as well as the market “I am very pleased to announce the and the Southwest. Most of Blue Sage’s
area between Waco and Ft. Worth formation of Frontier along with our investments are in established, profit-
(www.accessdisposal.com). partnership with Blue Sage and Trail- able companies with $20 million to $100
creek,” said Mr. Gustafson. “Further, million of revenue and $3 million to $12
K2 Waste Solutions was formed in we are extremely fortunate at this early million of EBITDA. Blue Sage invests in
early 2015 by Eric Konik and Bill Killian a variety of industries, with each initial
to both acquire and start-up waste “I am very pleased to announce investment in a company ranging from
collection firms. In June 2015 the the formation of Frontier $10 million to $15 million. The firm is
company acquired Greenline Waste and along with our partnership based in Austin, TX (www.bluesage.com).
Recycling which provides residential
waste collection and optional recycling with Blue Sage and Trailcreek.” Blue Sage’s partner on Frontier is
services to Phoenix-area communities Trailcreek Capital Group, a
that are not provided with city services. stage to add Bill Killian, Tim Henderson, Denver-based private investment
Also in June 2015, K2 acquired Lake and Jake Friemel to our senior manage- firm led by Andrew Pozatek, its
Country Disposal, a Menomonee Falls, ment team. The collective experience founder and Managing Principal
WI-based provider of commercial waste of our management group and board (www.trailcreekcapitalgroup.com). g
collection services. In July 2015, K2 provides an excellent foundation for
acquired Dayton, TX-based LT’s Garbage us to grow Frontier into a leader in the
Service which provides waste and solid waste industry.”
recycling hauling for residential
customers in the Houston area. “We are excited to

As a result of these partner with John Gus-
initial acquisitions,
Frontier—headquartered tafson and Trailcreek
in Dallas—is now a
provider of municipal to form Frontier,” said
solid waste services to
the municipal, residen- Peter Huff, Co-Founder
John Gustafson tial, commercial and
industrial markets. The company is led and Managing Member
by CEO John Gustafson, a veteran in the
waste industry with prior experience in of Blue Sage. “John’s Peter Huff
senior management roles at Progressive
Waste Solutions, one of North America’s previous roles highlight
largest full-service waste management
companies. Also joining the senior man- his ability to build and grow a successful
agement team will be Tim Henderson
from Access Disposal Services and Bill waste services business, and the team
Killian from K2 Waste Solutions. The CFO
he put together has the experience and

talent to help execute on our plans for

Frontier’s growth.”

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 7 June 2017

Platforms, Add Ons, and Exits

Solis Sells M.L. Kishigo to Bunzl

Solis Capital Partners has sold ML Kishigo Manufacturing Company,
a maker of high-visibility safety garments, to Bunzl PLC.

ML Kishigo is a designer and manufacturer of industrial safety ny headquartered in London. The company is
wear, including high-visibility and flame resistant vests, shirts, primarily a distributor of non-food consumable
jackets, pants and rainwear. The company’s products are worn products including food packaging, cleaning
by individuals working in hazardous environments, including and hygiene supplies, personal protective
construction workers, airport personnel, city and statewide equipment and carrier bags. The company’s
municipality workers and operators of large equipment. ML customers include contract cleaners, retailers, catering firms
Kishigo was founded in 1971 and is based in Santa Ana, CA and food processors. Bunzl has operations in 23 countries and
(www.mlkishigo.com). almost half of its business is conducted in North America, with
additional operations in Europe as well as a smaller presence in
Solis acquired the company in January 2015 in partnership with Australia, Asia and Brazil (www.bunzl.com).
the company’s CEO Greg Hayward. “We are extremely proud of
Greg and his team,” said Daniel Lubeck, Managing Director of Los Angeles-based Intrepid Investment Bankers
Solis. “It was an ideal partnering investment in every respect. (www.intrepidib.com) was the financial advisor to
The company flourished, and the team is talented, focused and ML Kishigo on the sale. g
excited about the runway ahead.”

Solis Capital Partners invests
from $2 million to $25 million in
companies with revenues between
$15 million and $100 million
that operate in the business services, niche manufacturing,
and software sectors. Target companies are typically
headquartered in the Western United States. Solis is actively
investing through Solis Capital Partners II which closed in May
2013. The firm has offices in Newport Beach and San Diego
(www.soliscapital.com).

“Solis provided critical resources and was a tremendous support
in accelerating our growth and evolution,” said Mr. Hayward.
“We are thankful for our partnership with Solis, and also very
excited about ML Kishigo’s next phase of evolution with Bunzl.”
Bunzl is a multinational distribution and outsourcing compa-

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 8 June 2017

Platforms, Add Ons, and Exits

J.F. Lehman Acquires Optical Encoder Maker

J.F. Lehman & Company has acquired PSSC Holding Co. and its subsidiary,
BEI Precision Systems & Space Company.

BEI Precision Systems & Space Company and is headquartered in New York with by adding recruiters and business de-
(BEI) designs and manufactures highly an additional office in Washington, DC. velopment professionals throughout the
accurate optical encoders, accelerom- country, and is pursuing add-on acquisi-
Evercore Partners was the financial tions in high growth and attractive areas
advisor to J.F. Lehman and of healthcare staffing.
KippsDeSanto & Co.—a
Tysons Corner, VA-based “In partnering with Jay
investment bank special-
izing in aerospace/defense and his team, we add
and technology companies—
another experienced
advised BEI.
senior executive to our
Debt financing for this transaction
was arranged by BNP Paribas and leadership group and a
Barings.
new high growth divi-
BelHealth Adds-on to AHSG
American Healthcare Staffing Group sion to complement our
(AHSG), a portfolio
company of BelHealth Paul Barrett existing verticals. We
Investment Partners, has
acquired Thaxton Barabe, have built a diversified company with of-
a provider of interim
eters, infrared optical scanners and en- healthcare management fices in three states, talented personnel
coder-based motion control systems that staffing. BelHealth acquired AHSG in
are used in military, space, aviation, October 2016. throughout the country and a base from
and range instrumentation applications.
Thaxton Barabe provides interim health- which to accelerate organic growth. We
care management staffing as wells as
recruitment process outsourcing (RPO), look forward to continuing our momen-
executive search, and management con-
sulting. Customers include some of the tum and building one of the country’s
largest healthcare systems in the coun-
Over 90% of all optical encoders current- try including Kaiser Permanente, Hospi- leading healthcare staffing companies,”
ly flying in space are BEI encoders. The tal Corporation of America, Tenet Health
company traces its roots back to 1862 and Sutter Health. Thaxton Barabe was said Paul Barrett, a BelHealth Vice
when it was founded as the D.H Baldwin founded in 2013 and is headquartered in
Company, a manufacturer of pianos. Portland (www.thaxtonbarabe.com). President.
BEI is headquartered near Little Rock in
Maumelle, AR (www.beiprecision.com). Jay Somera, the founder and CEO of the BelHealth Invest-
company, will remain as President and ment Partners
“BEI has an exceptional will continue to lead Thaxton Barabe. invests from $20 million to $50 million in
AHSG is a national provider of health- companies in three healthcare seg-
reputation for provid- care staffing. Specialties include ments: services, products, and distribu-
dialysis, pharmacy, interim healthcare tion. BelHealth is currently investing
ing unique and highly leadership, travel nurse and vendor out of a $350 million fund and is based
management. The company is headquar- in New York (www.belhealth.com). g
accurate sensors to tered in Edmond, OK (www.ahsstaffing.
com).
prime contractors and
BelHealth is active in accelerating or-
system providers in the ganic growth in AHSG’s existing divisions

Steve Brooks defense and aerospace
markets,” said Steve

Brooks, a Partner at J.F. Lehman. “The

company has a longstanding history

supporting many important programs.

We look forward to partnering with

management to support the continued

growth and future success of the busi-

ness through organic development and

complementary bolt-on acquisitions.”

J.F. Lehman & Company was founded by
Dr. John Lehman, who served six years
as Secretary of the United States Navy.
To date, J.F. Lehman has made invest-
ments in companies with an aggregate
transaction value of approximately $1.6
billion. The firm was founded in 1992

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 9 June 2017

Platforms, Add Ons, and Exits

New Mountain Capital to Buy VWR

Avantor, a portfolio company of New Mountain Capital, has agreed to acquire publicly
traded VWR in an all cash transaction valued at $6.4 billion. VWR is one of the two largest
distributors of equipment and consumable supplies to the laboratory sector across all
industries with a #2 US market share and a #1 market share in Europe.

VWR (NASDAQ:VWR) distributes more than 2 million products Avantor is a manufacturer of materials
to the government, biotechnology, life science, education, and chemicals used in pharmaceutical,
electronics and pharmaceutical sectors. Products include chem- biopharmaceutical, laboratory, research
icals, reagents, consumables, durable products, and and electronics applications. The company’s product line
scientific equipment & instruments. The company also includes more than 30,000 SKUs marketed around the world
provides custom manufacturing of buffers, reagents, active under several brand names including J.T.Baker, Macron Fine
pharmaceutical ingredients, high purity ingredients, ultra-pure Chemicals, BeneSphera, Rankem, Diagnova and POCH brands.
acids, and other chemicals used in biopharmaceutical and The company has approximately 10,000 customers in over
industrial applications, and production processes. The company 100 countries. Avantor is headquartered near Philadelphia in
was founded in the late 1920s by George Van Waters and Center Valley, PA and has other manufacturing sites located in
Nat Rogers as a small chemical company. Today, VWR has Phillipsburg, NJ; Paris, KY; The Netherlands; Mexico; Poland;
approximately 10,200 employees and is headquartered near and India (www.avantorinc.com). New Mountain acquired
Philadelphia in Radnor, PA (www.vwr.com). Avantor, then called Mallinckrodt Baker, from Covidien
(formerly Tyco Healthcare), in 2010.
Varietal Distribution Holdings is the largest shareholder of VWR
and is comprised of a number of investors including Madison Avantor’s acquisition of VWR will create a major consum-
Dearborn Partners which has been a significant shareholder of ables-focused provider of products and services to the life
VWR since it acquired the company from Clayton, Dubilier & sciences and advanced technologies industries, as well as
Rice in 2007. education, government, and research institutions across
the globe.
Following the closing of the acquisition, which is expected
in the third quarter of 2017, New Mountain Capital will be the New Mountain currently manages over $15
lead shareholder of the combined company and Madison billion of private and public equity funds.
Dearborn will have no equity interest in the company. “We The firm is an industry generalist but has
believe this combination creates significant value for all specific expertise in education, health care, software,
stakeholders including customers, partners and the employees. business services, logistics, specialty chemicals, federal ser-
The combined company will have a strong position as a vices, media, consumer products, financial services and insur-
vertically integrated, global player in manufacturing and ance, environmental services, infrastructure and energy. New
supply chain solutions for the life sciences, advanced tech- Mountain was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in New
nologies, and research industries,” said Matt Holt, Managing York (www.newmountaincapital.com).
Director at New Mountain Capital.
Madison Dearborn Partners invests in
privately held or publicly traded companies
in the following sectors: financial and
transaction services; business and government services; health
care; basic industries; consumer; and telecom, media and
technology services. In August 2016 the firm closed its seventh
buyout fund at $4.4 billion. Madison Dearborn was founded in
1992 and is based in Chicago (www.mdcp.com).

Goldman Sachs, Jefferies, and Barclays are acting as financial
advisors to Avantor, and BofA Merrill Lynch is the financial
advisor to VWR. Fully committed financing of the acquisition
has been provided by Goldman Sachs, Barclays, and Jefferies. g

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 10 June 2017

Platforms, Add Ons, and Exits

St. George Logistics Going Last Mile

St. George Logistics, a portfolio company of Wind Point Partners, has acquired Extra
Express, a division of Dicom Transportation Group which is also a portfolio company of
Wind Point. St. George Logistics was acquired by Wind Point and logistics operating executives Chris Jamroz
and Hessel Verhage in September 2016 from Ironwood Capital.

Founded in 1982, the Extra Express division of Dicom ground transportation systems in North America, managing a
provides warehousing and delivery services to blue-chip network of approximately 2,000 delivery vehicles and 55 facil-
accounts throughout California. Extra Express, located near ities. Dicom was acquired by Wind Point in March 2014 and is
Los Angeles in Brea, CA, operates four warehouse facilities headquartered in Montreal (www.dicomexpress.com).
and has a network of more than 300 delivery vehicles
(www.extraexpress.com). “This is an exciting transaction for both St.

According to Wind Point, St. George will leverage Extra’s oper- George and Dicom. St. George will add last
ating capabilities to introduce local last mile delivery services
across its network, which includes 32 facilities totaling over mile as a critical component to its full line
five million square feet of space. St. George will launch last
mile delivery services in California in May 2017 and plans to of import/export services, which was identi-
establish last mile services at other port and inland
facilities later this year. fied as a core strategic priority at the time of

“The last mile delivery segment is a our acquisition of the company,” said Konrad
critical component of the import
supply chain and our custom- Salaber, a Principal with Wind Point. “Dicom, Konrad Salaber
ers spend over $100 million meanwhile, has the opportunity to
annually on third party
transportation providers focus its resources on its core footprint, which
who visit our facilities,
pick up products, and make has emerged as one of the largest region-
individual deliveries to the
final recipient,” said Mr. al ground transportation networks in
Jamroz. “The acquisition of
Extra will allow us to relieve North America.”
our customers of a substantial
operational burden by offering a Dicom’s transportation net-
closed-loop solution that is faster, works generate approximately
cheaper, and more technologically 50% of its sales in the eastern
integrated with our other services.”
half of Canada, 45% of its
St. George is a provider of container freight station sales in the eastern half of
(CFS) services for ocean and air cargo imported into the United the US, and 5% of its sales
States. The company also provides logistics services, including in California. “Extra is an
contract warehousing, distribution, e-commerce fulfillment and exceptional business with
transportation services. The St. George customer base includes an impressive track record of
freight forwarders, neutral NVOCCs (non-vessel operating growth. However, given Dicom’s
common carriers), retailers, consumer packaged goods compa- success in establishing one of the
nies, and other businesses. The company is headquartered near continent’s leading regional ground
Newark in South Kearny, NJ with additional facilities located in networks in the eastern half of North
the nation’s largest ports and metropolitan areas, including Los America, Extra’s operations in California
Angeles, Houston, Chicago, Atlanta, Savannah and Charleston have become non-core to our strategy,” said
(www.stgusa.com). Scott Dobak, CEO of Dicom.

Dicom is a provider of business-to-business regional, expedited Raymond James was the financial advisor to St. George and
ground transportation services across the United States and Barclays was the financial advisor to Dicom. Antares Capital,
Canada. The company operates one of the largest regional LStar Capital, and NewStar Financial provided financing for the
transaction.

Wind Point invests from $20 million to $70 million of equity in
companies with revenues from $100 million to $500 million and
EBITDAs of at least $8 million. Industries of interest include
business services, consumer products, healthcare and industrial
products. Wind Point Partners was founded in 1984 and is based
in Chicago (www.wppartners.com). g

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 11 June 2017

Platforms, Add Ons, and Exits

Gridiron Acquires LeafFilter

Gridiron Capital has acquired LeafFilter, a provider of gutter protection services
to residential homeowners in North America.

LeafFilter’s systems protect homes from the damages of “We were able to work collaboratively with
clogged gutters, including foundation damage, structural Matt and his team prior to the investment
issues, and other water-related problems. The company to map out a clear growth strategy
designs, sells, ships, installs, services, and warranties the and plan for the resources needed to
product directly to the consumer, through its captive field scale the company,” said Joe Saldutti,
office network. The company serves regions in 34 states Managing Director at Gridiron Capital.
through 36 office locations across the United States and Canada “We’re excited to have the opportuni-
and has installed over 27 million feet of gutter protection ty to partner with the LeafFilter team
product to date. The company was founded in 2005 by Matt as they continue to build and expand
Kaulig and is headquartered north of Akron in Hudson, OH their business.”
(www.leaffilter.com).
In October 2016, Gridiron held a final closing
“We are extremely proud of the company we have of the firm’s third fund, Gridiron Capital Fund III,
built over the past 12 years and are excited to LP, at the hard cap of $850 million. Gridiron’s earlier
partner with Gridiron Capital as we enter fund closed with $425 million of capital commitments in
our next phase of growth,” said Mr. Kaulig. August 2012. g
“Our team was eager to work with Grid-
iron Capital who shares our
entrepreneurial and performance
driven culture and has significant
experience partnering with
founder-owned businesses.”

Gridiron Capital
invests in manufac-
turing, service and specialty consumer companies
that have EBITDAs from $5 million to $30 million and
that are located in the United Statesand Canada.
The firm is based in New Canaan, CT
(www.gridironcapital.com).

“Having significant experience with our own family-owned
businesses, we are impressed by the strong foundation Matt
has built with LeafFilter,” said Tom Burger, Managing Partner of
Gridiron Capital. “The hard work and dedication of him and his
team mirror the same values and culture we have at Gridiron
Capital. We are looking forward to helping to build and grow an
already outstanding company.”

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 12 June 2017

Platforms, Add Ons, and Exits

GenNx360 Sells TBEI to Federal Signal

GenNx360 Capital Partners has agreed to sell its portfolio
company, Truck Bodies and Equipment International, to
Federal Signal Corporation for $270 million.

Truck Bodies & Equipment International (TBEI) manufactures ficiencies, and an unyielding commitment to serve customers
dump bodies, landscape bodies, grain bodies, platforms, hoists, better,” said Ron Blaylock, a Founder and Managing Partner of
and truck and trailer equipment and accessories. TBEI operates GenNx360. “We backed a strong management team headed by
six major brands – Travis Trailer & Body, Crysteel, Ox Bodies, Robert Fines, TBEI’s President and Chief Executive Officer. We
Rugby Manufacturing, DuraClass, and J-Craft -through four are excited that this exit positions TBEI for continued success,
manufacturing and installation facilities in Minnesota, Alabama, while also generating highly attractive returns for GenNx360’s
Mississippi, and North Dakota. The company sells its products limited partners.”
through more than 800 distributors and dealers across North
America and through a national network of third party ware- Federal Signal (NYSE: FSS) is a designer,
houses. TBEI employs approximately 850 people and is head- manufacturer and supplier of products that
quartered near Birmingham in Hoover, AL (www.tbei.com). are used in municipal, governmental,
industrial and commercial applications.
GenNx360 acquired TBEI in September 2015. In September The company is headquartered in the Chicago suburb of
2016, the firm completed the add-on acquisition of Oak Brook (www.federalsignal.com).
Houston-based Travis Body and Trailer, a manufacturer
of aluminum end dumps, bottom dumps and transfer trailers GenNx360 is a private equity firm
used in the construction, waste and recycling, rendering and focused on investing in industrial
agriculture end markets. The buy of Travis expanded the business-to-business companies
company’s aluminum dump trailers and dump bodies product in the middle market. Sectors of interest include industrial
line, expanded the TBEI’s footprint into the Southwest, and machinery and components, logistics and supply chain
expanded its dealer network. solutions, industrial and environmental services, food and
agricultural, infrastructure equipment and services, specialty
During the twelve months ended March 2017, TBEI generated chemicals, packaging, and aerospace and defense. GenNx360
revenues of $206 million and EBITDA of $37 million resulting was founded in 2006 and is headquartered in New York
in a purchase price multiple of just under 7.3x. (www.gennx360.com). g

“The success of our investment in TBEI demonstrates
GenNx360’s ability to execute on our investment strategy
to substantially increase the company’s revenue and
profitability through synergistic acquisitions, operational ef-

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 13 June 2017

Platforms, Add Ons, and Exits

Crestview Acquires KIC

Accuride Corporation, a portfolio company of Crestview
Partners, has agreed to acquire KIC, a portfolio company
of Industrial Opportunity Partners. The acquisition of KIC is
Accuride’s first add-on since being acquired by Crestview in November 2016.

KIC is a supplier of wheel-end components for heavy and Industrial Opportunity Partners
medium-duty trucks and trailers. The company supplies brake (IOP) focuses on acquiring
drums, rotors, hub & drum assemblies, steel wheels and middle-market manufacturing
aluminum wheels to both original equipment manufacturers and value-added distribution
and aftermarket distributors. KIC designs and tests its own businesses, typically with
products and partners with contract manufacturers located revenues between $30 million
throughout the world. The company is headquartered in and $350 million. The firm
Vancouver, WA and operates thro ugh nine distribution centers targets businesses with strong product, customer, and market
located in the United States, Canada, and Mexico positions and provides both management and operational
(www.kic-group.com). resources to support sales growth and operational
improvements. IOP was founded in 2005 and is headquartered
Accuride is a manufacturer and in the Chicago suburb of Evanston (www.iopfund.com).
supplier of steel and aluminum
wheels and wheel-end components This transaction is expected to close by the end of
to the North American and European June 2017. g
commercial vehicle markets. Company
owned brand names include Accuride,
Accuride Wheel End Solutions, Gunite
and Gianetti Ruote. Accuride has manufacturing facilities in
the US, Canada, Mexico and Italy (www.accuridecorp.com).

“Combining the strengths of KIC and Accuride will enable
us to increase competitiveness and expand into new market
segments,” said Accuride President and CEO Rick Dauch. “Our
similar product and technology offerings mesh well; while the
combination of our complementary business models gives us
greater capacity and ability to flex up and down in response to
industry cycles and customer demand.”

Crestview Partners invests
from $100 million to $250
million in companies with
enterprise values up to $3
billion. Sectors of specific interest include energy, financial
services, healthcare, industrials and media. Crestview, founded
in 2004 and headquartered in New York, manages funds
with over $7 billion of aggregate capital commitments
(www.crestview.com).

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 14 June 2017

Platforms, Add Ons, and Exits

Trivest Sells NCS to AEA Investors

Carwash Solutions, a provider of carwash services and systems and a portfolio company
of Trivest Partners, has been acquired by AEA Investors.

National Carwash Solutions (NCS) manufactures a full line of
friction and touch-free rollover car washes, along with convey-
or, drive-through, and self-service car wash systems. Addition-
ally, the company provides installation services, preventative
maintenance and carwash chemicals (detergents, presoaks,
waxes and protectants) through its nationwide support network
that has over 250 service technicians. The company was found-
ed in 1973 and has a total of approximately 500 employees.
NCS is headquartered near Des Moines in Grimes, IA
(www.NationalCarwashSolutions.com) (www.MacNeilwash.com)
and (www.Ryko.com).

Trivest first invested in NCS companies that operate in the following sectors: retail and
in December 2010 when it consumer products, services, specialty chemicals, and
acquired Ryko Manufacturing, value-added industrial products. The firm manages
a manufacturer of friction and approximately $9 billion of capital. AEA was founded in 1968
touch-free rollover car washes, as well as conveyor, drive- and is headquartered in New York (www.aeainvestors.com).
through, and self-service car wash systems. In April 2013, Ryko
acquired MacNeil Wash Systems, a manufacturer of car wash “We are excited to have partnered with AEA
equipment (brushes, dryers, vacuums and applicators). In July Investors. This transaction will allow us to
2014, Ryko acquired National Carwash Solutions, the largest continue to strengthen our leadership position
independent carwash service organization in North America. In within the industry and best position us for
May 2016, Trivest rebranded Ryko under the National Carwash growth in the coming years,” said Michael
Solutions name. Gillen, CEO of National Carwash Solutions. “We had an immedi-
ate connection with AEA. It was apparent there was a great fit
“We truly enjoyed working with NCS and being between our two companies.”
a part of their growth strategy,” said Russ
Wilson, a Partner with Trivest. “We are happy BlackArch Partners (www. blackarchpartners.com) was the
that AEA Investors is on board to continue financial advisor to Trivest and NCS on this transaction. g
the growth of NCS at this juncture of their
history.”

Russ Wilson Trivest makes control and non-control in-

vestments in founder or family owned businesses in the United

States and Canada that have revenues of at least $25 million

and cash flows of at least $5 million. Sectors of interest include

business services, niche manufacturing, consumer products,

and franchisors. The firm was founded in 1981 and has com-

pleted more than 250 transactions totaling over $6 billion in

value. Trivest is headquartered in Miami (www.trivest.com).

AEA makes equity and debt investments in middle market

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 15 June 2017

Platforms, Add Ons, and Exits

ICS Switches Sponsors

Industrial Container Services (ICS), a provider of reconditioned container services
and a portfolio company of Aurora Capital Group since August 2011, has been
acquired by Centerbridge Partners.

According to Centerbridge, ICS is the largest provider of Aurora Capital focuses principally
reusable container services in North America. The company’s on control investments in middle-
primary focus is on the collection, reconditioning, and market industrial, manufacturing
recycling of steel, plastic, and fiber drums as well as and service oriented businesses.
intermediate bulk containers. From its 49 facilities across The firm, founded in 1991, has $2.5 billion of capital under
the US and Canada, ICS reconditions and distributes close to management and is headquartered in Los Angeles
9 million containers annually and services more than 3,000 (www.auroracap.com).
customers representing a variety of end markets, including
food products, chemicals, petroleum products, waste disposal, Debt financing for the transaction was led by Goldman Sachs
coatings, and inks. ICS is led by Charles Veniez, President and Bank and Ares Management, together with Deutsche Bank,
CEO, and is headquartered near Orlando in Maitland, FL Credit Suisse and Jefferies. Piper Jaffray was the financial advi-
(www.iconserv.com). sor to ICS, and Credit Suisse was the buy-side financial advisor
to Centerbridge. g
“ICS is a market leader in the North American industrial
container reconditioning services industry and provides a
differentiated value proposition to its customers,” said Kyle
Cruz, a Senior Managing Director of Centerbridge. “We believe
this differentiation is a foundation for further growth and we
are excited to partner with Charles, his senior management
team and the 1,700 employees of ICS to support the company
in the years ahead.”

Centerbridge Partners
invests from $50 million
to $300 million in US based
leveraged buyouts and
distressed securities. The firm has $29 billion of capital under
management and is headquartered in New York with an
additional office in London (www.centerbridge.com).

“It has been exciting for Aurora to be a part of ICS’ growth
and expansion over the last six years,” said Mark Rosenbaum,
a Partner at Aurora. “We wish the company and its new
owners continued success.”

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 16 June 2017

Platforms, Add Ons, and Exits

Atlantic Street Buys GAT

Atlantic Street Capital has made a majority investment in GAT Airline Ground Support,
a provider of outsourced airline services at airports across the United States.

GAT Airline Ground Support was founded in 1965 and was for airlines from an operational efficiency and
the first FBO (fixed-base operator) in Mobile, AL. FBO’s are
organization granted the right by an airport to provide safety standpoint. Carriers select outsource
aeronautical services such as fueling, hangaring, tie-down
and parking, aircraft rental, aircraft maintenance, flight partners with strong performance records,
instruction, and similar services. Today, GAT offers a portfolio
of services at 37 airports throughout the United States, and GAT has one of the best track records in
including ramp services (aircraft ground handling; cabin
appearance; cargo management; baggage handling; and aircraft the business,” said Peter Shabecoff, Atlantic
towing), passenger handling (ticketing and check-in; baggage
check-in; and gate & boarding), and other ancillary services Street Capital founder and Managing Partner.
(ground support equipment maintenance and fueling; lavatory
and water services; deicing; and janitorial services). GAT has Peter Shabecoff “We have looked at several ground services
approximately 2000 employees and is headquartered in Mobile companies over the last several years and
(www.gatags.com).
believe the team at GAT is well-positioned to take advantage
Atlantic Street acquired its majority
interest in GAT from the founding of the trends and opportunities in the market.”
Raines family. Boe Strange, Chief
Executive Officer of GAT, will Atlantic Street Capital invests from $10 million to $30 million
continue in that position and remain a significant shareholder in middle market companies with EBITDA from $4 million to $15
in the company. million. Sectors of interest include consumer products and ser-
vices, transportation and logistics, business services, and basic
GAT offers a portfolio of services at 37 airports throughout the manufacturing. The firm was founded in September 2006 and is
United States, including ramp services (aircraft ground han- based in Stamford, CT (www.atlanticstreetcapital.com). g
dling; cabin appearance; cargo management; baggage handling;
and aircraft towing), passenger handling (ticketing and check-
in; baggage check-in; and gate & boarding), and other ancillary
services.“Ground operations represent mission critical services

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 17 June 2017

Platforms, Add Ons, and Exits

H.I.G. Capital Expanding ACG Materials

ACG Materials, a portfolio company of H.I.G. Capital, has acquired North Florida Rock, a miner and
processor of limestone products. The buy of North Florida Rock is the sixth add-on acquisition that
ACG has completed since H.I.G. acquired the company at the end of 2012.

North Florida Rock’s products are used limestone reserves. In January 2015, our expertise of mineral processing.”
in infrastructure, agriculture and build- ACG acquired JA Jack (www.jajack.com),
ing products applications. The company a Seattle-based limestone producer that H.I.G. specializes
owns and operates a quarry near Talla- specializes in high-quality limestone in providing capital
to small and
hassee in Marianna, FL and ships rocks products such as grits and medium-sized
across the Florida Panhandle, Alabama, flours. In August 2015, ACG companies and invests in manage-
and Georgia. completed the buy of ment-led buyouts and recapitalizations
Art Wilson Company of manufacturing or service business-
ACG Materials is a diversified minerals (www.awgypsum.com). es. H.I.G. has more than $20 billion of
miner and processor with 20 mines, Art Wilson mines, capital under management. The firm
4 downstream processing facilities and processes, and markets was founded in 1993 and is based in
over 500 million tons of reserves across anhydrite, gypsum and Miami with additional offices in Atlanta,
Oklahoma, Texas, Nevada, Washington limestone products used in Boston, Chicago, Dallas, New York, San
and British Columbia. The company agricultural, industrial, and Francisco, London, Hamburg, Madrid,
supplies varying grades of gypsum, anhy- commercial applications Milan, Paris, and Rio de Janeiro
drite, limestone, caliche, sand & gravel, across Nevada, California, Washington, (www.higcapital.com). g
and aggregate products that serve indus- Oregon, and Idaho.
tries such as building
products (wallboard, plasters, “We are pleased to
decorative home goods), agriculture
(fertilizer), infrastructure (roads, support ACG Materials
bridges), oil & gas (roads and well pads)
and food & pharmaceuticals (animal in its acquisition of
feed, beer, baked goods). ACG Materials
was founded as Harrison Gypsum in 1955 North Florida Rock,”
and is headquartered in Norman, OK
(www.acgmaterials.com).H.I.G. Capital said Keval Patel, a Man-
acquired ACG Materials in 2012. In 2013
the company acquired several aging Director of H.I.G.
aggregates sites in South Texas and ex-
panded again in 2014 to give the Capital. “The invest-
company 12 operating pits in the
region. In 2014 the company also ment further establish- Keval Patel
acquired MK Crushing, with locations
in Oklahoma and Kansas, to add to its es ACG as a national,

pure-play industrial minerals and

aggregates provider and continues our

strategy to expand ACG’s geographic

reach and end market diversification.

The Southeastern US remains a key

expansion area for ACG and, as the

market leader across the Florida Pan-

handle, North Florida Rock will help

accelerate our growth in this region.”

“We are excited about the strategic
expansion of our operations into the
Southeastern US,” said Paul Harrington,
CEO of ACG Materials. “North Florida
Rock not only allows us to grow outside
our core Oklahoma, Texas, and Pacific
Northwest markets, but also significant-
ly expands our customer footprint and
portfolio of limestone products within

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 18 June 2017

Platforms, Add Ons, and Exits

Riverside Acquires Countrywide Grounds Maintenance

The Dwyer Group, a franchising platform company of The Riverside Company, has
completed the add-on acquisition of Countrywide Grounds Maintenance, a provider of
commercial groundskeeping services in the UK. This is the 10th add-on acquisition
Riverside has completed for Dwyer Group, which recently reached $1.5 billion in system-wide sales, and the
second add-on acquisition in as many months.

Countrywide Grounds Maintenance “Countrywide is a prov- Working with Ms. Kriscunas and Mr.
offers commercial grass cutting, Fulton on the transaction for Riverside
landscape maintenance, sports grounds en success story that were Partner Sarah Roth, Senior
maintenance and winter services (salting Associate Chase Eckert, Associate Ryan
and snow removal). The company was expands Dwyer’s Collins, Associate Connor Ryan and
founded in 1985 by Martin Stott and has Operating Partner Tom Anderson.
more than 50 franchisees that maintain footprint and service
thousands of sites for customers across Madison Capital, GE Capital, NXT Capi-
the UK. The company is based south of offerings in the UK,” tal, NewStar Financial, Midcap Financial
Manchester in Cheadle Hulme, UK and Ares Capital provided financing for
(www.countrywidegrounds.com). said Riverside Managing the transaction.

The Dwyer Group, acquired by Riverside Partner Suzy Kriscunas. Suzy Kriscunas The Riverside Company is a global
in August 2014, is now the owner of 16 “This opens new ave- private equity firm focused
service-based franchise organizations: on investing in and acquiring
Aire Serv, Glass Doctor, The Grounds nues with customers and prospects while growing businesses valued at
Guys, Five Star Painting, Molly Maid, Mr. up to $400 million. Since its
Appliance, Mr. Electric, Mr. Handyman, delivering cross- founding in 1988, Riverside
Mr. Rooter, ProTect Painters, Rainbow
International, Locatec, Window Genie, selling opportunities for franchisees.” has invested in more than 460
Neighborly, Bright & Beautiful, and transactions. The firm’s international
Countrywide Grounds Maintenance. portfolio includes more than 80
These brands collectively have more companies. The firm is headquartered
than 2,700 franchises throughout North in New York with 16 additional US
America, UK and Germany. The Dwyer and international offices
Group was founded in 1981 and is (www.riversidecompany.com). g
headquartered in Waco, TX
(www.dwyergroup.com). Dwyer continues to

diversify its suite of

service concepts, and

remains an active

acquirer. “We have an

exceptional platform in

Dwyer, and we’re eager Jason Fulton
to keep supporting Dw-

yer and its more than 2,700 franchises

globally,” said Riverside Vice President

Jason Fulton.

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 19 June 2017

Platforms, Add Ons, and Exits

Nautic Acquires Endries International

Nautic Partners has agreed to acquire Endries International, a distributor of fasteners,
from Ferguson Enterprises. This transaction is expected to close by the end of June.

Endries International, which was acquired by Ferguson in No- “Endries is a very well-run company with an
vember distributor of fasteners and Class-C parts to industrial
original equipment manufacturers worldwide. The company excellent management team and great cul-
has more than $250 million in annual revenues and provides
over 500,000 SKUs to its customers that operate across a range ture,” said Chris Pierce, a Managing Director
of end markets including agriculture equipment, all terrain
vehicles, foodservice equipment, furniture, general machinery, of Nautic. “We look forward to supporting the
healthcare, HVAC, industrial controls, lawn & garden equip-
ment and many others. company’s organic growth initiatives and we

Endries operates primarily through a ven- are particularly enthusiastic about the com- Chris Pierce
dor managed inventory model that supports pany’s Pulse RFID offering. We will also work
replenishment systems to provide products and
support services that are critical to maintaining with management to pursue selective acquisitions in Endries’
the customer’s manufacturing process. Endries, led by
CEO Steve Endries, was founded in 1970 and is headquartered fragmented market.” Pulse RFID is a service offering of Endries
in Brillion, WI (south of Green Bay) and has eight US and inter-
national distribution centers (www.endries.com). introduced in 2016 that tracks on-site fastener usage

Nautic Partners is a middle-market through radio frequency identification technology and
private equity firm with over $2.5 bil-
lion of equity capital under manage- alerts Endries when restocking is needed.
ment. Nautic targets majority equity investments of $25 million
to $75 million. Sectors of interest include business services, Ferguson, the seller
manufacturing, and healthcare. The firm was founded in 1986 of Endries, is the
and is headquartered in Providence, RI (www.nautic.com). In one of the largest
December 2015, Nautic completed fund raising for Nautic Part- wholesale distributors of residential and commercial
ners VIII at the hard cap of $900 million. plumbing supplies and pipe, valves and fittings in the US.
The company is also a major distributor of HVAC equip-
ment, waterworks and industrial products and services.

The company is headquartered in Newport News, VA
(www.ferguson.com). Ferguson has sales of $13
billion in 2016 and is a subsidiary of Wolseley
(LSE: WOS) (www.wolseley.com).

“Endries is a world-class OEM/fasten-
er distributor and has been a valued
member of the Ferguson portfolio of
companies for a number of years,” said
Rob Braig, Ferguson’s Vice President of
Industrial Strategy. “We are confident that
Nautic will help Endries continue to grow and
provide additional opportunities for the business and
its associates in the future.”

BMO Harris Bank is leading the financing for this transaction.
BB&T Capital Markets was the financial advisor to Ferguson. g

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 20 June 2017

Platforms, Add Ons, and Exits

ClearLight Acquires Moore Landscapes

ClearLight Partners has acquired Moore Landscapes, a provider of landscape
installation and maintenance services.

Moore Landscapes provides landscape installation, maintenance “Victor and Eric Moore have built a great or-
and enhancement services; snow and ice management; and
interior plant maintenance services to companies, homeowner ganization and we believe the company is well
associations, and municipalities. The company was founded in
1948 by Floyd Moore and has been led by Floyd’s sons, Victor positioned for continued growth and success.
and Eric Moore, since the 1980s. Victor and Eric will remain eq-
uity holders in the company and will join the company’s board We believe Joel Korte is a fabulous addition
of directors. Moore Landscapes is based in the Chicago suburb
of Northbrook, IL (www.moorelandscapes.com). to an already talented team and look forward

In connection with the investment, Joel Korte—a former Senior to supporting him and the entire team,” said
Vice President with The Brickman Group, a large commercial
landscape services provider owned by KKR—has also invested in Andrew Brennan, a Partner at ClearLight and Andrew Brennan
the company and was named Moore’s new CEO. Mr. Korte was also a former senior executive at commercial
with Brickman from 2004 to 2015. At Brickman he was directly
responsible for operations in Ohio, Michigan, Kentucky, Tennes- landscape services firm Valley Crest Companies. Valley Crest
see and western Pennsylvania, Indiana, Illinois and Minnesota
markets which included 32 individual business branches totaling was acquired by The Brickman Group in June 2014.
$300 million in revenue. During that time he merged four
add-on acquisitions into the business over a 10 year period. He ClearLight Partners invests from
began with Brickman in 2004 after he sold his company, Urban $10 million to $50 million in US
Environments, which he founded in 1993, to Brickman. or Canadian based middle market
companies with revenues from $25 million to $250 million and
EBITDAs from $4 million to $15 million. Sectors of specific inter-
est include specialty manufacturing and distribution; business
services; and consumer products and services. The firm has
$900 million of assets under management and is based near Los
Angeles in Newport Beach, CA (www.clearlightpartners.com).

“Moore Landscapes has long had a culture of

going above and beyond to serve its clients,

which has created an outstanding reputation

and strong trust-based relationships with a

discriminating customer base,” said Mr. Korte.

“The management team and field teams have

incredible tenure and experience and a repu- Joel Korte
tation for delivering consistently high quality

service. I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to work with such

a highly skilled team and to contribute to the next stage of

growth of Moore.”

Moore Landscapes was represented by CCG Advisors, an
Atlanta-based investment banking firm (www.ccgadv.com).
Managing Partner Brian Corbett led the transaction for CCG. g

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 21 June 2017

Platforms, Add Ons, and Exits

Audax Sells Aavid to Genstar

Audax Private Equity has sold its portfolio company Aavid Thermalloy to Boyd Corporation,
a portfolio company of Genstar Capital. Audax acquired Aavid Thermalloy from Nautic
Partners in December 2012.

Aavid manufactures a wide range of thermal management a combination with Boyd, and wish them continued success as
products that are used to dissipate heat to prevent failure in a new partners.”
range of electronic and industrial systems. Aavid’s products are
used in aerospace and defense, telecommunications, LED light- Boyd Corporation is a manufacturer of
ing, server, data center, consumer electronics, gaskets and seals and other specialty
transportation, and industrial applica-
tions. The company was founded in products that are used in energy man-
1964 and is headquartered in Laconia, agement and environmental sealing applications. Boyd’s
NH (www.aavid.com). customers include multinational OEMs across various end
markets, including the mobile computing, commercial
During the Audax ownership term six vehicle, recreational vehicle, consumer electronics,
add-on acquisitions were complet- agriculture and construction equipment, aerospace,
ed that expanded the company and medical industries. The company, led by CEO
geographically and diversified it into Mitch Aiello, is headquartered in Modesto, CA
new technologies and end markets. (www.boydcorp.com).

• T hermacore (October 2016), Boyd has been a portfolio company of Genstar since
a Lancaster, PA-based maker of April 2015 when it was acquired from Snow Phipps Group
thermal management systems used in which in turn acquired the company from Sentinel Capital
military, aerospace, energy conversion, Partners in July 2012.
medical and test equipment applications;
Genstar invests from $50 million to $400
• Niagara Thermal Products (January 2016), a Niagara Falls, million in middle-market companies that have
NY-based maker of heat exchangers, heat sinks, and heat enterprise values from $50 million to $1 billion
transfer fins used in aerospace, defense, alternative ener- and EBITDAs greater than $15 million. The firm targets invest-
gy, marine, and industrial markets; ments in the financial services, software, industrial technology,
and healthcare industries. Genstar was founded in 1988 and is
• Qfinsoft Technology (May 2015), a Rossland, BC-based based in San Francisco (www.gencap.com).
developer of software used to simulate fluid flow, thermo-
dynamics, and combustion processes; The Audax Group makes control investments of
$10 million to $100 million in middle market
• Kunze-Folien (May 2015), a Munich, Germany-based companies with transaction values of $25 million to
company that specializes in the design, manufacture, and $500 million. Sectors of interest include industrial
integration of thermally conductive films, heat sinks, and manufacturing; energy; outsourced industrial services;
transistor clips in electric power environments; consumer products; healthcare devices and services;
non-asset based logistics; technology; aerospace & defense;
• Allcast (July 2014) an Allenton, WI-based designer, manu- business services; and direct marketing. The firm was founded
facturer and distributer of aluminum die casting products in 1999 and has offices in Boston, New York and Menlo Park
for LED lighting, recreational vehicle, consumer, and indus- (www.audaxgroup.com).
trial applications;
Robert W. Baird & Co. and BMO Capital Markets were the
• Nuventix (July 2014) an Austin, TX-based maker of fanless financial advisors to Aavid. g
thermal management products used in LED lighting appli-
cations.

“The Aavid team has executed on its thesis of Geoffrey Rehnert
accelerating organic growth through lead-
ing technical expertise and manufacturing
capabilities, and by acquiring strategic assets
with both new and complementary offerings,”
said Geoffrey Rehnert, Co-Chief Executive
Officer of Audax. “We are excited for the new
opportunities available to the team through

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 22 June 2017

Platforms, Add Ons, and Exits

CIC Looks to Food Ingredients and development; and niche healthcare struction services industry as investment
CIC Partners service providers. The firm is based in in broadband networks as well as in
has partnered Dallas (www.cicpartners.com). utility-related infrastructure looks to be
with oper- very strong for years to come,” said Mr.
Crestview to Roll Up Engineering and Beans. “We were attracted to Crestview
ating executive Randy Cimorelli, the Construction Services due to its significant experience in the
former CEO of Mac & Massey, to pursue Crestview Partners has joined with Con- communications services space and
a platform company investment in the gruex, a newly-formed company estab- history of partnering with management
food ingredients, flavors and specialty lished to build a nationwide platform to teams to grow businesses.”
manufacturing sectors. provide design, engineering, construc-
tion and maintenance services to broad- Mr. O’Hara has 30 years of experience
Mr. Cimorelli is a 25 year veteran of the band network and utility operators. in the telecommunications industry.
food industry. He joined Mac & Massey, From 2011 to 2014 he was the Chairman,
an ingredient broker and distributor, Congruex and Crestview are targeting a CEO and President, of Integra Telecom,
in 1990 and was appointed President consolidation of the fragmented engi- a communication services provider
and COO in 2000. In 2007 the company neering and construction services indus- serving business customers in 11 western
was acquired by Chicago-based High try via acquisitions and organic growth states. Earlier in his career he was the
Street Capital and was later sold to based on the assumption that robust co-founder and President of Level 3
family-owned Batory Foods in 2012. Mr. spending on communication networks Communications, a provider of local,
Cimorelli left Batory Foods in April 2015. and utility infrastructure is expected to national, and global communications
continue for the foreseeable future. services to enterprise, government and
“Our goal is to partner carrier customers.
with companies in the Kevin O’Hara and Bill Beans
food ingredients sector, “There are a host of growing engineer-
specifically flavors, spe- Crestview and the Congruex senior ing and construction companies to which
cialty manufacturing management team are committing up Congruex can serve as a transformation-
and distribution/logis- to $200 million of equity as part of what al partner. Bill and I have known each
tics, providing not only is expected to be a total investment of other for 30 years, and we have each
Randy Cimorelli capital resources but approximately $500 million. Bill Beans spent our entire careers in the construc-
also leadership on key growth initiatives and Kevin O’Hara, two experienced tion and communications services indus-
to drive the business,” said Mr. Cimorel- industry executives, lead Congruex. tries,” said Mr. O’Hara. “Our alliance
li. “It is a privilege to partner with CIC Mr. Beans serves as CEO and Mr. O’Hara with Crestview combines significant
and I look forward to contributing serves as Executive Chairman capital, deep operating experience and
my experience to their model of extensive industry relationships that are
partnering with companies across the (www.congruex.com). critical to helping the companies that
food industry.” join Congruex grow.”
Mr. Beans is the founder and former
“We are excited to work with Randy CEO of Open Range Communications, “We are thrilled to have the opportunity
and leverage his long-term customer a Colorado-based telecommunications to partner with Bill and Kevin. They are
relationships as we partner with existing company which ceased operation in seasoned industry veterans who are ide-
owner-operators to help grow their busi- 2012. Open Range was formed in 2004 ally suited to pursue this consolidation
ness,” said Amir Yoffe, Partner with CIC to provide wireless broadband infra- strategy in a sector experiencing signif-
Partners. “His expertise and knowledge structure to rural communities. “It is a icant secular tailwinds from increasing
of ingredients, distribution and indus- very exciting time to be investing in the demand for broadband capacity,” said
trial customers combined with CIC’s highly fragmented engineering and con- Brian Cassidy, a Partner at Crestview.
foodservice and contract manufacturing “We continue to evaluate a pipeline of
background present exciting revenue exciting investment opportunities and
and growth opportunities as we pursue a look forward to advancing them with
platform investment in this industry.” Congruex.”

CIC Partners makes equity investment of Crestview
$5 million to $50 million in companies Partners invests
that have revenues of $10 million to from $100 mil-
$500 million and EBITDA of $5 million to lion to $250 million in companies with
$50 million. Sectors of interest include enterprise values up to $3 billion. Sec-
food manufacturing and service com- tors of specific interest include energy,
panies; multi-unit restaurant and retail financial services, healthcare, industri-
operating companies; oil and gas drilling

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 23 June 2017

Platforms, Add Ons, and Exits

als and media. Crestview, founded in most cases unmatched set of special- brands in the undercar
2004 and headquartered in New York, ty plastics capabilities to the medical aftermarket,” said
manages funds with over $7 billion of device sector, so the opportunity to Young Lee, a Managing
aggregate capital commitments (www. relaunch our brand, one with a long Director at Audax.
crestview.com). history in medical devices and strong
brand equity with our customers, was On a combined basis,
Kohlberg Forms Spectrum compelling,” said Mauricio Arellano,
Kohlberg & Company has completed the President of Spectrum’s medical Young Lee APC is a supplier of
division. automotive, light
its acquisition of Pexco and
merged the company with its “We are thrilled to have closed this truck and heavy duty replacement parts
existing portfolio company transaction and to announce the launch
PPC Industries. The newly of our new, combined company, Spec- offering emissions products under the
merged company is named trum Plastics Group,” said Neil Shill-
Spectrum Plastics Group. Pexco has ingford, the Chief Executive Officer of AP, ANSA, Cherry Bomb, TruckEx, Xlera-
been a portfolio company of Odyssey Spectrum Plastics Group. “There are
Investment Partners since August 2012. few businesses as unique and well-re- tor, and Silverline brands, and brake and
sourced as Spectrum Plastics Group
Spectrum designs and manufactures cus- in the market today, and we aim to chassis components under the Centric,
tom and specialty plastics products for support our customers with our broad
niche, high value-added end markets, range of manufacturing technologies and C-Tek, Posi Quiet, Fleet Performance,
including medical, food and industrial products.”
applications. The company has multiple and StopTech brands. The company sells
manufacturing capabilities including Kohlberg &
thermoplastic and silicone tubing extru- Company invests its products through traditional ware-
sion, injection molding, film, packaging, in companies in
assembly and value-add manufacturing. the industrial manufacturing; consumer house distributors, feeders, retailers,
The company has 20 facilities located products; business services; healthcare
in five countries (United States, Mexico, services; and financial services sectors. performance, and specialty channels
Costa Rica, Ireland and Malaysia) and The firm concentrates on companies
approximately 2,000 employees. Spec- with EBITDAs between $20 million (www.APCAutoTech.com). Centric Parts
trum is headquartered in Alpharetta, GA and $100 million where it can invest
(www.spectrumplasticsgroup.com). between $50 million and $200 million has over one million square feet of
of equity. Kohlberg & Company was
“Since Kohlberg’s acquisition of PPC founded in 1987 and is based north of warehouse and manufacturing space
in 2014, our goal has been to build a New York City in Mt. Kisco, NY (www.
broadly diversified medical componentry kohlberg.com). and is headquartered in Industry, CA
leader. The combination of Pexco with
PPC represents the ideal next step in Audax and Harvest (www.centricparts.com). AP Emissions
our achievement of this vision,” said Form APC Automotive
Roger Prevot, Operating Partner at Technologies has over 450,000 sq. ft.
Kohlberg and the Chairman of Spectrum Harvest Partners and
Plastics. Audax Private Equity of warehouse and manufacturing space
have completed the
The formation of Spectrum specifically combination of AP and is headquartered in Goldsboro, NC
merges the medical products manu- Emissions Technologies and Centric Parts
facturing of Pexco and PPC Industries’ to form APC Automotive Technologies (www.apexhaust.com).
Kelpac Medical business. The combined (APC). As part of the transaction, Har-
medical operations now consist of 15 vest provided a new equity investment Hugh Charvat will lead APC as Chief
manufacturing facilities and feature into the combined business and Audax Executive Officer. Mr. Charvat joined AP
both thermoplastic and silicone technol- retained a significant ownership stake in March 2016 as CEO. He is the former
ogies (www.pexco.com) (www.ppcind. in APC. Chairman, President and CEO of Schrad-
com) (www.kelpacmedical.com). er International, a manufacturer and
“We now bring a full spectrum and in Audax acquired AP Emissions Technol- distributor of pressure-related valve and
ogies (AP) in 2014 and Centric Parts in sensing technologies. Dan Lelchuk, who
2008. “We have been privileged to work co-founded Centric Parts in 2000, will
with both the AP and Centric teams in remain as the President of Centric Parts.
developing leading aftermarket plat-
forms. Together with Harvest, we look “We expect our plat-
forward to expanding APC through
leveraging the strengths of AP and Cen- form to continue to
tric and continuing to acquire leading
grow through lever-

aging the combined

strengths of both

businesses and through

Michael DeFlorio future acquisitions in
the undercar after-

market. I am looking forward to working

with Dan and the rest of the Centric

team to continue delivering exceptional

service to our customers and accelerat-

ing our growth,” said Mr. Charvat.

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 24 June 2017

Platforms, Add Ons, and Exits

Both Harvest and Audax have experience ny’s silicone products – which include Greyrock provides
in the automotive aftermarket and will bags, tubing, blocks, drains, catheters, subordinated debt
provide their joint resources to support and equity in sup-
APC. “AP and Centric are leaders in dilators, sheeting and rods - are used in port of buyouts, recapitalizations and
their industry, with longstanding track oncology, cardiology, urology, pediatrics, growth capital for lower middle market
records of supplying high-quality parts otolaryngology (ears, nose and throat) companies that have EBITDAs between
to their customers. We are excited to and radiology applications. The compa- $3 and $30 million. In March 2017, the
partner with Audax and the management ny was founded in 1994 by Briant Benson firm held a final closing of its fourth
team and look forward to supporting and has facilities near Sacramento in fund, GCG Investors IV, LP, at $275 mil-
APC in its next phase of growth,” said Woodland, CA (headquarters) and Costa lion. The new fund was oversubscribed
Michael DeFlorio, Senior Managing Direc- Rica (www.bentecmed.com). and had an original target of $200
tor at Harvest. million. Greyrock has offices in Berkeley,
At closing of the transaction, Mr. CA; Chicago, IL; and Wilton, CT (www.
Financing for the transaction was pro- Benson will no longer be an employee greyrockcapitalgroup.com).
vided by Jefferies, Goldman Sachs, and or board member of the company, but
Crescent Capital Group. Jefferies was will remain as a technical consultant. First Atlantic Exits TestEquity
the financial advisor to AP and Lazard Replacing Mr. Benson as CEO is Scott First Atlantic
Middle Market and Angle Advisors ad- Christensen, a 35-year medical device Capital has sold its
vised Centric. veteran who has served as Bentec’s
President and COO since March 2015. portfolio company TestEquity to LKCM
The Audax Group makes control invest- Headwater Investments. First Atlantic
ments of $10 million to $100 “We look forward to working with Scott acquired TestEquity in December 2012
million in middle market and his management team to build upon from Evercore Capital Partners.
companies with transaction Bentec’s already strong foundation and
values of $25 million to $500 create a much larger and more valuable TestEquity is a distributor of electron-
million. Sectors of interest in- enterprise,” said Jay Binkley, Hermitage ic test and measurement equipment
Equity Partners’ President. “In order to as well as laboratory and production
clude industrial manufacturing; energy; support us in this effort, we are excited supplies. In addition to offering new
outsourced industrial services; consumer to announce that three former senior equipment for sale, rental, or lease,
products; healthcare devices and ser- officers from Hospital Corporation of
vices; non-asset based logistics; tech- America and Medtronic have joined our TestEquity also provides pre-
nology; aerospace & defense; business investment group, and we look forward owned equipment that has
services; and direct marketing. The firm to the industry insights and relationships been restored, tested and
was founded in 1999 and has offices in they bring to our partnership.” calibrated, and backed with
Boston, New York and Menlo Park (www. a one-year warranty. The
audaxgroup.com). Hermitage Equity Partners in- company is an authorized
vests in companies that have stocking distributor for Key-
Harvest Partners invests in companies revenues from $10 million sight Technologies (formerly
with $20 million to $100 mil- to $250 million. Sectors of Agilent Technologies’ Elec-
lion of EBITDA and total enter- interest include manufacturing, business tronic Measurement Group),
prise values of $100 million to services and distribution companies, Tektronix, and many other
$1 billion. The firm invests in with an emphasis on industrials, food manufacturers. The company
processing, and environmental services. was founded in 1971 and is
four industry verticals: business services The firm is based in Nashville (www. headquartered near Los
and consumer; healthcare services; hermitageequity.com). Angeles in Moorpark, CA
industrial services; and manufacturing (www.testequity.com).
& distribution. Harvest was founded in
1981 and is based in New York (www. Under First Atlantic’s ownership, TestE-
harvestpartners.com). quity completed two add-on acquisi-
tions: In January 2017 the company
Hermitage and Greyrock acquired Massachusetts-based JENSEN
Buy Bentec Medical Tools + Supply, a subsidiary of Stanley
Bentec Medical, a silicone medical de- Black & Decker, and a supplier of MRO
tools and supplies used by electronics
vice and OEM contract manufacturers, field service technicians,
manufacturer, has been and repair professionals; and in August
acquired by Hermitage 2014, TestEquity acquired Texas-based
Equity Partners and Greyrock Capital EWD Solutions, a distributor of solder
Group. stations and solder, hand tools, work
benches, task lighting, and microscopes.
Bentec Medical is a designer and man-
ufacturer of silicone-based medical “Since acquiring TestEquity in 2012,
devices, and a provider of OEM contract we have worked closely with manage-
and engineering services. The compa-

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 25 June 2017

Platforms, Add Ons, and Exits

ment to enhance the Capital Markets was the financial advisor
to Oracle.
company’s strategy and
Incline Equity Part-
expand the business ners, the seller of
Oracle, invests from
through acquisitions. $15 million to $30 million in support of
recapitalizations, buyouts and corporate
We believe TestEquity divestitures of lower middle market
companies. The firm is based in Pitts-
has a solid strategy burgh (www.inclineequity.com).

Roberto Buaron with a strong manage- Friend Skoler Exits PetMatrix
ment team and is well PetMatrix, a portfolio
company of Friend Skol-
positioned for the future,” said Rober- er & Co., has agreed to

to Buaron, Chairman and CEO of First be acquired by publicly traded Spectrum
Brands. Friend Skoler & Co. made a mi-
Atlantic. nority investment in PetMatrix in August
2012.
First Atlantic invests in middle-market 18 acquisitions of independent elevator
companies that are active in the plastics companies and L Squared will provide PetMatrix is a manufacturer and market-
and packaging, food and beverage, con- capital to continue this acquisition er of patented, non-rawhide pet chews
sumer and industrial products, and busi- strategy. for dogs sold under the Dreambone and
ness services sectors. Since its inception Smartbones brands. Customers include
in 1989, First Atlantic has acquired 70 “We have been ex- mass merchandisers, food and drug
companies and consolidated them into stores, and pet specialty stores. The
22 major platforms. The firm is based tremely impressed by company has annual revenues of ap-
in New York (www.firstatlanticcapital. proximately $75 million. PetMatrix was
com). Oracle’s track record founded by Mark Stern, Peter Wheeler
and Martin Glinsky in 2008 and is head-
of growth and commit- quartered in Saddle Brook, NJ (www.
dreambone.com) (www.smartbones.
ment to high quality com) (www.petmatrix.net).

customer service and “PetMatrix will immediately strengthen
our pet care portfolio with its well-es-
safety,” said Sean Sean Barrette tablished and growing brands catering
to healthy alternative pet trends,” said
LKCM Headwater invests Barrette, Partner of L Andreas Rouvé, Chief Executive Officer
from $5 million to $40 of Spectrum Brands. “We expect it to
million of equity in companies that have Squared. “Our fam- further solidify Spectrum Brands as a
revenues of $50 million to $250 million. leader in the North American dog chews
Sectors of interest include industrial ily office capital base and long-term
distribution & services, manufacturing,
energy, financial services, and health- investment horizon is well suited to
care. The firm has offices in Ft. Worth
and Houston (www.lkcmheadwater.com). support Oracle’s geographic expansion,

investment in its people and techni-

cal expertise, and pursuit of accretive

acquisitions.”

Robert W. Baird was the financial advisor L Squared invests from $15 million to
to First Atlantic on this transaction. $75 million of equity in technol-
ogy-enabled services, industri-
L Squared Buys Oracle Elevator al technology, and education
L Squared Capital companies. Targeted invest-
Partners has complet- ments will have revenue of $10
ed the acquisition of
million to $100 million and EBITDA of $3
Oracle Elevator, a provider of elevator million to $20 million. Oracle represents
maintenance, repair, and modernization the sixth platform investment that L
services. Longview Asset Management Squared has acquired over the past last
co-invested alongside L Squared on three years. The firm was founded in
this transaction. The seller of Oracle 2014 and has offices in Newport Beach
Elevator is Incline Equity Partners which and Chicago (www.lsquaredcap.com).
acquired the company in June 2010.
“Oracle is pleased to partner with the L
Oracle Elevator is a one of the larger, Squared team to drive the next phase of
independent, and non-union providers Oracle’s growth as the leading indepen-
of elevator maintenance, repair, and dent alternative to the Big Four elevator
modernization services across all major manufacturers,” said Mr. Belliveau.
brands of equipment. The company was “L Squared’s long-term investment
founded in 2004 and currently operates horizon will allow us to make further
22 branch locations across 13 states. investments in our people and continue
The company is led by President and growing our geographic footprint while
CEO Paul Belliveau and is headquartered providing the highest level of service to
in Dover Plains, NY (www.oracleelevator. our customers.”
com).
Twin Brook Capital Partners, NXT Capital
Since its founding, Oracle has completed and Varagon Capital Partners provided
financing for this transaction. BB&T

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 26 June 2017

Platforms, Add Ons, and Exits

category and to provide compelling in the United States serving over 8,000 that are generally either a provider of
white space revenue opportunities in Eu- stone fabricators, tile installers and proprietary products or are a niche, val-
rope, Latin America and Asia.” concrete and monument professionals. ue-added distributor. Since its founding
Pearl Abrasive provides branded abra- in 1976, Harbour Group has acquired 192
Spectrum Brands sives and cutting tools to over 5,000 dis- companies in 40 different industries.
(NYSE: SPB) is a diver- tributor customers in the construction The firm is based in St. Louis (www.
sified consumer products company and a and industrial end markets. Pearlman harbourgroup.com).
supplier of consumer batteries, residen- Enterprises is led by CEO Dan Davidenko
tial locksets, residential builders’ hard- and is headquartered in Norcross, GA Merit Sells Fire Truck Maker to REV
ware, plumbing, shaving and grooming (www.granquartz.com) (www.pearlabra- Merit Capital Partners has sold its port-
products, personal care products, small sive.com). folio company Ferrara Fire Apparatus,
household appliances, specialty pet sup- which it acquired in March 2009 through
plies, lawn and garden and home pest “We are really looking its fourth fund, to publicly traded REV
control products, personal insect repel- Group.
lents, and auto care products. Spectrum forward to partner-
Brands had revenues of approximately Ferrara Fire Apparatus (FFA) is a man-
$5 billion in fiscal 2016 and is headquar- ing with Dan and the ufacturer of pumpers, aerials, tankers
tered near Madison in Middleton, WI and rescue vehicles for municipal and
(www.spectrumbrands.com). Pearlman team,” said industrial customers. FFA manufactures
over 300 fire trucks per year at its
Friend Skoler & Co. invests “The GranQuartz and Louisiana facility and sells both directly
from $3 million to $20 mil- and through a network of independently
lion in companies that have Pearl Abrasive brands owned dealers. The FFA product port-
enterprise values between $10 million folio includes multiple fire apparatus
and $100 million. The firm was founded Clay Hunter are synonymous with configurations tailored to the specific re-
in 1998 by Alexander Friend and Steven quality, service and quirements and demands of the fire ser-
Skoler and is headquartered in Saddle vice industry – including custom-builds
Brook, NJ (www.friendskoler.com). innovation, and as a result, they are on customer’s own chassis as well as
products on commercially available
RBC Capital Markets is the financial advi- clear market leaders with devoted chassis such as Freightliner and Interna-
sor to Spectrum Brands and J.P. Morgan tional. FFA has more than 450 employees
is the financial advisor to PetMatrix. and diverse customer bases,” said with annual revenues of approximately
$140 million. The company was founded
This transaction is expected to close by Clay Hunter, Managing Director at The by Chris Ferrara in 1982 and is based
the end of May. near Baton Rouge in Holden, LA (www.
Stephens Group. “We are committed ferrarafire.com).
Stephens Buys Pearlman from Harbour
The Stephens Group to supporting the continued growth of Merit Capital Partners invests mezzanine
has acquired Pearl- and equity capital
man Enterprises from the business as it further penetrates its of $15 million to $60
the Harbour Group million in companies
existing markets, enters new markets
which invested in the company in 2006. with at least $5 million of EBITDA that
and introduces new products.” are active in the manufacturing, distri-
Pearlman Enterprises is a developer bution and services industries. Merit was
and distributor of supplies, tools, and The Stephens Group is a fam- founded in 1993 and is based in Chicago
equipment used in the fabrication and ily-office that makes both (www.meritcapital.com).
maintenance of hard surfaces in the minority and control investments
residential, commercial, and industrial in public and privately held companies.
end-markets. The company’s products Sectors of interest include energy,
include proprietary, exclusive, and energy services & industrials; business
national branded products with over services; consumer services & consumer
18,000 SKUs across multiple price points products; financial services; healthcare;
and applications. and technology, media & telecommuni-
cations. The Stephens Group is based in
Pearlman operates through two subsid- Little Rock, AR (www.stephensgroup.
iaries—GranQuartz and Pearl Abrasive. com).
GranQuartz is considered to be one of
the larger distributors of stone fabri- Harbour Group, the seller of
cation tools, equipment and supplies Pearlman Enterprises, invests in
North American-based companies
with valuations from $30 mil-
lion to $500 million. Areas of interest
include product-oriented businesses

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 27 June 2017

Platforms, Add Ons, and Exits

“The Ferrara brand has a long history acquisition of CCSI Networks (www.ccsi- to repair, protect and reinforce pipes,
of product innovation built around a networks.com) in July 2016. The buy of pipelines and other civil infrastructures.
commitment to heavy duty vehicle con- Fairhaven now brings NTI Connect equip- The company’s products are made with
struction,” said Dan Peters, President of ment integration competencies (engi- moisture-curable and epoxy based
REV Fire Group. “The addition of Ferrara neer, furnish and install) that it can use carbon fiber, fiberglass, Kevlar and other
to the REV Fire Group enables a number to service cable companies, enterprise aramid (a class of synthetic polymers)
of new growth opportunities including and telecom customers in the rapidly composite materials. NRI’s customer
expansion of our reach nationwide and increasing demand for video content. base includes companies in a variety
adding new geographical regions and key Fairhaven was founded in 2003 by Jerry of industries, including construction,
accounts.” Hart, Andy Goldsworthy and Jason Willis industrial, marine, military, mining,
and is based in Atlanta (www.fairhaven- municipalities, offshore, oil & gas,
REV Group (formerly Allied llc.com). and petrochemical. NRI was founded
Specialty Vehicles) is a in 1982 and is headquartered near
manufacturer of specialty vehicles in- “We’re enthusiastic about our Palm Beach in Riviera Beach, FL
cluding fire & emergency (fire apparatus partnership with O2 and the NTI (www.neptuneresearch.com).
and ambulance products), recreational Connect team,” said Mr. Hart
vehicles, shuttle buses, school buses, and Mr. Goldsworthy in a released state- “This was an amazing opportunity for
mobility vans, and industrial (termi- ment. “We’re ready to take our business NRI to catapult to the next level and we
nal trucks, cut-away buses and street to the next level and we believe that couldn’t have picked a better partner
sweepers). The company was formed by adding fiber and wireless network than Palm Beach Capital. They have the
in 2010 by American Industrial Partners deployment services to our equipment knowledge and team to help us continue
merging of four companies: Collins In- integration services, as a team we now to revolutionize the composite infra-
dustries (buses and ambulances), E-One address all needs of leading telecom structure business,” said Chris Lazzara,
(firetrucks), Halcore Group (emergency and data networks, making our busi- NRI’s Chairman, President and Chief
and rescue vehicles) and Fleetwood ness more relevant to the needs of our Executive Officer.
Enterprises (RVs). Allied Specialty Ve- clients.”
hicles changed its name to REV Group NRI originally developed its pipe repair
in November 2015 and went public in O2 Investment Partners makes control systems for application within the ma-
January 2017. REV Group (NYSE:REVG) investments of $5 million to $75 million rine industry. The company’s products
is headquartered in Milwaukee (www. in companies with EBITDAs from $2 mil- caught the attention of the US Navy
revgroup.com). lion to $10 million located anywhere in and in 1996 the company secured its
the US and Canada but has a preference first contract with the US government
O2 Expands Telecom Services Platform for the Midwest and the Great Lakes requiring NRI’s Syntho-Glass system to
NTI Connect, a plat- regions. Sectors of interest include be carried aboard all Navy vessels. Since
form company of O2 niche manufacturing, niche distribution, that time, the company has doubled
select service businesses, and certain every three years in size and revenues
Investment Partners, has acquired Fair- technology businesses. The firm is based as the demand for its products contin-
haven Integration Services, a provider of in the Detroit suburb of Bloomfield Hills ues to grow. To support this demand,
cable, telecom and IT engineering and (www.o2investment.com). NRI has introduced an average of one
installation services. new product per year over the last four
Luke Plumpton, a Partner at O2 Invest- years, with each product focusing on the
The NTI Connect ment Partners, led this transaction. company’s participation in the evolution
group of companies of leak repair and pipe reinforcement.
provides specialized fiber optic technical Palm Beach Invests in NRI
services including fiber optic splicing, Palm Beach Capital has made “We are excited to partner with Chris
testing, connectivity and data center an investment in Neptune Re-
build-outs to fiber, wireless and broad- search and its sister company
band carriers, cable companies, data
center operators and telecom com- FloTex, providers of infrastructure repair
panies. NTI Connect is led by its CEO and restoration services.
Brian James and is headquartered in the
Chicago suburb of West Chicago (www. Neptune Research and FloTex (together
nti-connect.com). NRI) provide materials that are used

The NTI Connect platform was estab-
lished with the initial acquisitions of
National Technologies (www.nation-
al-technologies.com) and NTI Fiber
(www.ntifiber.com) in October 2015.
The platform was expanded with the

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 28 June 2017

Platforms, Add Ons, and Exits

and the rest of the NRI team and to $181 million in 2015, resulting in a gross of environmental and industrial services.
provide the support necessary for the multiple of invested capital of 3.4 times
company to realize the full, global and a 34% gross rate of return. Onex’ Water Kleen Services is a provider of en-
potential of NRI’s revolutionary solutions portion of the sale proceeds was $563 vironmental and industrial services. The
and service offering,” said Michael Chal- million, including carried interest of company specializes in high-pressure
hub, a Partner at Palm Beach Capital. $65 million. (10,000 to 24,000 psi) water blasting
“NRI represents a unique opportunity for to clean mix tanks for asphalt, resin &
us to invest at an inflection point where Onex Corporation paint, and oilfield storage tanks. Water
such innovative solutions are so well- makes private equity Kleen also uses vacuum trucks to clean
timed within the energy, infrastructure investments through up dry and liquid industrial materials,
and composite industry.” the Onex Partners and the ONCAP fam- and to clean mud pits and tanks on oil
ilies of funds. Onex has more than $25 or gas well sites. The company’s services
Palm Beach Capital makes con- billion of assets under management and include the hydro excavation of under-
trol and non-control investments is based in Toronto with additional offic- ground pipelines and for digging holes
of $5 million to $50 million in es in New York, New Jersey and London with air knife capabilities. Water Kleen
companies with enterprise val- (www.onex.com). operates primarily in the Dallas/Ft.
ues from $20 million to $200 million and Worth metropolitan area but also works
that have at least $20 million of revenue KKR (NYSE:KKR) throughout Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana
and a minimum EBITDA of $5 million. makes private equi- and Arkansas. The company was found-
Sectors of interest include business ty, fixed income and other investments ed in 1995 and acquired in May 2013 by
services, business process outsourc- in companies in North America, Europe, brothers Michael and Andrew Janczak.
ing, transportation and logistics, and Asia and the Middle East. The firm was Water Kleen is based south of Dallas in
healthcare. Since founding in 2001, Palm founded in 1976 and in addition to its Ennis, TX (www.waterkleeninc.com).
Beach Capital has made investments in New York headquarters the firm has
42 companies and has approximately offices in Menlo Park, San Francisco, “We purchased Water Kleen in 2013
$325 million in total assets under Houston, Washington DC, London, Paris, from the founders and worked extreme-
management. The firm has offices in Hong Kong, Tokyo, Beijing, Mumbai, ly hard since then to create a solid
West Palm Beach and Tampa Dubai and Sydney (www.kkr.com). foundation for future growth,” said
(www.pbcap.com). Michael Janczak, President and CEO of
CDPQ is a Quebec-based insti- Water Kleen. “We have similar operating
The investment in NRI was made by tutional investor that manages philosophies with TAS and have invested
Palm Beach Capital through its fourth funds primarily for public and heavily in our people and equipment to
investment fund, Palm Beach Capital para-public pension and insur- provide exceptional service and value
Fund IV, LP. ance plans. As at December 31, 2016, it to our customers. TAS and Water Kleen
held C$270 billion in net assets. CDPQ have known each other for several
Onex Sells USI Insurance Services invests globally in major financial mar- years, and we were attracted to the
Onex Corporation has kets, private equity, infrastructure and culture, leadership and direction of TAS.
completed the sale of USI real estate (www.cdpq.com). I’m confident this transaction positions
Insurance Services to KKR Water Kleen for continued success and
TEAM Builds TAS Environmental growth with TAS.”
and Caisse de dépôt et placement du TAS Environmental Ser-
Québec (CDPQ) at an enterprise value of vices, a portfolio company TAS Environmental
$4.3 billion. of TEAM Partners, has Services is a region-
acquired Water Kleen Ser- al environmental
USI Insurance Services is one of the larg- vices, a regional provider services company that provides emer-
est insurance brokerages in the US with
approximately 140 offices and more than
4,400 employees offering property and
casualty, employee benefits and person-
al risk insurance products and services.
The company was founded in 1994 and
is headquartered in Valhalla, NY
(www.usi.com).

The Onex Group acquired USI in Decem-
ber 2012 with an equity investment of
$610 million, of which Onex’ share was
$170 million. With this sale, Onex has
now received total proceeds of $2.1
billion, including a prior distribution of

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 29 June 2017



Platforms, Add Ons, and Exits

debt. Within Ares, its private equity Pfingsten Acquires Sign-Zone Pfingsten in-
group manages $25 billion of assets and Pfingsten Partners vests in mid-
is currently investing its fifth private eq- has acquired dle market manufacturing, distribution
uity fund with $7.8 billion of committed Sign-Zone, a and business services companies that
capital. Ares Management is headquar- have transaction values ranging from
tered in Los Angeles with offices across manufacturer of wide format promo- $15 million to $100 million and EBITDA
the United States, Europe, Asia and tional signage and displays. This acqui- between $3 million and $12 million.
Australia (www.aresmgmt.com). sition is the third platform investment Since founding in 1989, Pfingsten has ac-
for Pfingsten’s $382 million fifth fund quired 117 such companies through five
“We are excited to which closed in March 2016. Harbour- funds with total commitments of $1.3
Vest co-invested with Pfingsten on this billion. The firm is based in Chicago with
partner with the tal- transaction. additional representative offices in India
and China (www.pfingsten.com).
ented DevaCurl team
HarbourVest invests in venture capital,
as long-term investors Sign-Zone is a maker of wide format, buyout, mezza-
portable promotional signage and dis- nine debt, credit,
in the company,” said plays that are sold under
the Showdown Displays, and real estate through primary fund
Dennis Gies, a Partner Creative Banner Displays investments, secondary purchases, and
and Victory Corps brand direct co-investments. The firm has
Dennis Gies in the private equity names. Products include ta- more than 400 employees, including
ble covers, retractable ban- 100 investment professionals, located
group of Ares Manage- ners, event tents, sail signs, in Asia, Europe, Latin America, and the
floor displays and other United States. HarbourVest has offices
ment. “DevaCurl is the related display types. The in Beijing, Bogotá, Boston, Hong Kong,
company sells its products London, Seoul, Tel Aviv, Tokyo, and
category leader and brand authority in to the education, health- Toronto (www.harbourvest.com).
care, financial services and
curly hair, with a long legacy of prod- technology markets through Minneapolis-based investment bank
a network of over 20,000 Quetico Partners (www.queticopartners.
uct innovation and an impressive track promotional products dis- com) was the financial advisor to
tributors, sign shops and printers. The Sign-Zone.
record of growth.” company was founded in 1999
and is based in the Minneapolis Paul Hastings (www.paulhastings.com)
“This investment in suburb of Brooklyn Center, MN served as legal advisor to Pfingsten. The
(www.signzoneinc.com). Paul Hastings team was led by Partners
DevaCurl exemplifies Brian Richards, Ziemowit Smulkowski
and Lisa Rushton.
our strategy of partner-

ing with best-in-class

management teams

that have distinguished David Kaplan
products and leader-

ship positions in their industries,” said

David Kaplan, Co-Founder and Partner

of Ares Management and Co-Head of the

firm’s private equity group. “We look

forward to supporting the company in

its next phase of growth.” “Showdown Displays

and Creative Banner

Tengram invests in Displays deliver innova-
companies in the
branded consumer tive products with out-
products and retail sectors. Specific
areas of interest include apparel, sport- standing service that
ing goods, consumer electronics, home
furnishings, health & beauty, spirits, and helps customers grow
food & beverages. Tengram was founded
in 2010 by William Sweedler and Mat- their businesses. We Scott Finegan
thew Eby and is based in Westport, CT look forward to build-
(www.tengramcapital.com).
ing on the company’s success through a

continued focus on customers and new

products while seeking complementa-

ry acquisitions,” said Scott Finegan, a

Pfingsten Managing Director.

“We are very proud to have been part of “We are thrilled to be joining forces
the growth of the brand of DevaCurl,” with Pfingsten. We had many options,
said Mr. Eby, Managing Partner at Ten- but Pfingsten was clearly the best
gram. “Colin and the team at DevaCurl partner for our business,” said John
have built an amazing brand on the Bruellman, Sign-Zone CEO. “Their oper-
foundation of unique, innovative prod- ating resources, global capabilities and
ucts and an incredibly loyal and engaged conservative capital structure will allow
consumer.” us to accelerate our growth while fur-
ther enhancing the legendary customer
Jefferies was the financial advisor to experience that our customers have
Ares and Financo was the financial advi- come to expect.”
sor to DevaCurl.

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 31 June 2017

New Funds June 2017

Fertitta Capital Launches With $500 Million

Fertitta Capital, a new private Left to Right: Sam Bakhshandehpour, Lorenzo Fertitta and Nakisa Bidarian
investment firm, has been
launched with an initial seed “It is a privilege to be able to continue to work with Lorenzo
investment of $500 million from and Frank who I greatly admire both personally and
bothers Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta. Fertitta Capital will invest professionally,” said Mr. Bidarian. “They bring unparalleled
across the capital structure in consumer companies in the experience to every business opportunity and a drive to
technology, media and entertainment sectors. win that is evidenced by their undisputed, successful track
record. With Fertitta Capital, we’ve created a special firm
“There is tremendous opportunity in the market for a firm that that will leverage our collective experience across multiple
combines patient capital with this unique team of experienced industries and provide bespoke solutions based on each
investors and operators,” said Lorenzo Fertitta, Chairman of opportunity. Our investment philosophy will be driven by
Fertitta Capital. “Our long-term view enables us to avoid partnering with exceptional people who we believe can achieve
mandated investment timelines and instead focus exclusively extraordinary results.”
on what really matters—understanding the needs of the
companies we partner with and helping them achieve their Mr. Bidarian will be joined at Fertitta Capital by Sam
operational and financial objectives.” Bakhshandehpour who will be a Managing Director. Mr.
Bakhshandehpour was formerly the CEO of SBE Entertainment,
The Fertitta brothers have a a hospitality, real estate and entertainment company, and be-
history of building successful fore that spent the majority of his 15-year Wall Street career at
companies in industries in which J.P. Morgan where he was the global head of gaming and the
they have invested and operated. west coast head of real estate & lodging
In 2016, they sold Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) to investment banking. g
entertainment, sports and fashion company WME|IMG. That
same year, they also sold Fertitta Entertainment, a gaming Fertitta Capital has offices in Los Angeles and Las Vegas (www.
and leisure management company, as part of their IPO of fertittacapital.com).
Red Rock Resorts, a developer and operator of casino
entertainment properties.

“There is tremendous opportunity in the market

for a firm that combines patient capital

with this unique team

of experienced investors and operators.”

Nakisa Bidarian will lead Fertitta Capital as CEO and
co-founder and be responsible for the deployment of capital.
Before joining Fertitta Capital, Mr. Bidarian served as the
CFO of UFC and earlier he held positions at Accenture, Citi,
Morgan Stanley and, most recently, the Mubadala Development
Company, a multi-billion-dollar sovereign investment company,
where he led their international real estate investment efforts.

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 32 June 2017

New Funds

Tecum Launches Tecum Capital was founded as a whol-
New SBIC Fund ly-owned subsidiary of F.N.B. Corpora-
Tecum Capital has tion in 2005. In 2013, the Tecum Capital
received a license from the US Small team spun out of F.N.B. and formed its
Business Administration (SBA) to first SBIC fund. Along with Mr. Gurgovits,
operate its second SBIC (Small Business the firm’s original founding partners in-
Investment Company) fund and has clude Matthew Harnett and Tyson Smith.
held a first closing for the new fund Tecum Capital is based in the Pittsburgh
at a fully subscribed $225 million. suburb of Wexford (www.tecum.com).

Tecum’s new fund, appropriately named ACON Closes Fourth Fund
Tecum Capital Partners II, will continue Middle market investor
the strategies of its first SBIC fund by ACON Investments has
investing $3 million to $15 million of held a final closing of
subordinated debt and equity in
companies that have revenues of $8 ACON Equity Partners IV, LP (AEP IV) at
million to $100 million and EBITDA of the hard cap of $1.07 billion. The new
at least $2 million. The investor base fund’s original target was $850 million.
of the new fund includes most of the
investors from the firm’s first SBIC fund, AEP IV received commitments from ex-
along with several new institutional isting ACON investors as well as several
investors, including several banks. new limited partners. The fund’s inves-
tors include public and private pensions,
“The second SBIC sovereign wealth funds, insurance com-
panies and other institutional investors
license is a significant from North America, Asia, and Europe.

achievement for Tecum ACON has already closed its first two
investments
Capital as it will help for AEP IV: in
November 2016 it acquired BioMatrix
drive our long-term Specialty Pharmacy, a Florida-based
specialty pharmacy platform company
growth plans,” said Ste- with a focus on both infused and oral
specialty drugs; and earlier, in February
phen Gurgovits, Jr., Stephen Gurgovits, Jr. 2016, it acquired in a public-to-private
Managing Partner of transaction Florida-based APR Energy, a
provider of large-scale
Tecum Capital. “This new fund aligns power generation ser-
vices through a fleet
with our primary investment strategy to of mobile power generation equipment.

provide strategic, long-term debt and ACON invests from $20 million to $150
million of equity capital in middle-mar-
equity capital solutions for lower middle ket companies. The firm was founded
in 1996 and has offices in Washington,
market companies.” DC (headquarters); Los Angeles; Mexico
City; Sao Paulo; and Bogota (www.acon-
With a strong interest in Rust Belt states investments.com).
as well as the Midwest, Southeast and
Mid-Atlantic regions, Tecum Capital Evercore Private Funds Group was
supports independent sponsors, fam- ACON’s global placement agent for this
ily offices, private equity funds, and fundraise and Hogan Lovells served as
management teams on recapitalizations, ACON’s primary fund counsel.
buyouts, generational transitions, acqui-
sitions, and other growth capital needs.

“Through strategic guidance and
operational improvements, Tecum
Capital offers an attractive partnership
for our portfolio companies,” added Mr.
Gurgovits. “Tecum is Latin for ‘with you’
and relationship investing is an import-
ant part of our business.” During the
four years under its first fund,
Tecum saw the total employee count of
its portfolio companies increase by 23%
to more than 3,600.

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 33 June 2017

Movers & Shakers June 2017

ROTH Adds Healthcare Banker to Team Columbia University. Revelstoke Adds Operating Partner
Denver-based
ROTH Capital New Hire at ParkerGale Revelstoke

Partners, a Newport Capital Partners has expanded its team
with the addition of Eric Shuey as an
Beach headquartered ParkerGale Capital has hired Jake Operating Partner.

investment bank, Petoskey as a new Principal. Mr. Pe-

has added Eric Cheng to the firm as a toskey will be active with investment

Managing Director and Head of due diligence

Healthcare Investment Banking. He will and working with “We are thrilled to have Eric as part
of the Revelstoke team and we look
be working at the firm’s New York office. portfolio companies forward to working closely with him to
build value in our existing portfolio com-
to identify and implement operational panies and to identify new and exciting
investment opportunities,”
Mr. Cheng has over 20 years of invest- improvements and new growth said Simon Bachleda, Managing Partner
at Revelstoke.
ment banking experience and has com- initiatives.

pleted over 130 equity, debt and M&A

transactions. He has advised and raised “Our operating impact

capital for a range of biotechnology, spe- on the portfolio is a

cialty pharmaceutical, medical device key to our success, so

and healthcare services companies. Prior we are excited to add Mr. Shuey has more

to joining ROTH, he was with Maxim Jake to our team. His than 25 years of pri-

Group as a Senior Managing Director and private equity opera- vate equity investing,

Head of Healthcare Investment Banking. Jake Petoskey tions skills and roll-up- corporate finance and

your-sleeves approach executive manage-

ROTH Capital Partners is a full service are a perfect match for ParkerGale and ment experience in the

investment bank. Sectors of specific the small tech companies we buy,” said healthcare industry. He

expertise include business services; Jim Milbery, founder and Partner at Eric Shuey previously served as

consumer; healthcare; industrial ParkerGale Capital. a senior executive at Fresenius Medical

growth; cleantech; resources; and tech- Care, a company that produces medical

Prior to joining ParkerGale, Mr. supplies that are used to facilitate or

Petoskey worked at Welsh, Car- aid renal dialysis, where he was involved
I look forward to working with the resources that son, Anderson & Stowe (WCAS)
with strategic initiatives, acquisitions

ROTH has committed to enhancing a first-rate for over five years as a Senior and partnerships.
healthcare practice Associate where he led various
operating initiatives across the Earlier in career, Mr. Shuey was part of
the senior management team of Liberty
firm’s healthcare and technol- Dialysis that grew the company into a
national provider of dialysis services
ogy companies. Before joining prior to its sale to Fresenius in early
2012. He is also an active investor,
nology & media. The WCAS, he spent three years at Capgemi- founder and board member of
healthcare services businesses and
firm was founded in ni Consulting as a has served on the boards of Apixio;
MedeAnalytics; National Cardiovascular
1984 and is headquar- management consultant. Mr. Petoskey Partners; Partners Surgical; Remedy
Partners; and Sound Physicians. Mr.
tered in Newport Beach has a BA in Supply Chain Management Shuey previously served as a Director at
DB Capital Partners, the private equity
with additional offices from Michigan State University. arm of Deutsche Bank responsible for
over $10 billion in assets, and as a
in Chicago, Houston, Principal at Aurora Capital Group, a
$1 billion private equity firm.
Los Angeles, New York, ParkerGale makes control investments

Eric Cheng San Diego, San Francis- in founder-owned, profitable technology

co and Hong Kong (www.roth.com). companies with subscription or

transaction-based revenue models. The

Since 2010, ROTH has assisted its health- firm was founded in 2014 by five former

care clients in raising over $12.7 billion members of Chicago Growth Partners –

in approximately 360 transactions. “I am Devin Mathews, Dave Chandler, Jim

delighted to begin this next phase of my Milbery, Kristina Heinze and Ryan

career with ROTH and to join a prom- Milligan. ParkerGale is headquartered

inent and highly regarded full service in Chicago (www.parkergale.com).

investment bank serving growth compa- Mr. Shuey is currently on the board of
directors of Encore Rehabilitation Ser-
nies. I look forward to working with the In November 2016 ParkerGale closed vices, a portfolio company of
Revelstoke since January 2015. Encore—
resources that ROTH has committed to its debut fund above target at $240 based in the Detroit suburb of Farming-
ton Hills—is a regional provider of
enhancing a first-rate healthcare prac- million. The new fund has a balanced rehabilitative therapy services
(physical, occupational and speech)
tice,” said Mr. Cheng. mix of limited partners that included

family offices, pensions, managed

Mr. Cheng earned his undergraduate accounts, endowments and funds of funds.

degree from UCLA and has his MBA from

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 34 June 2017

Movers & Shakers

and compliance and revenue cycle tionships with JEGI’s resources, strong Northwestern University.
support services to skilled nursing global brand and thought leadership
facilities, assisted living facilities excellence,” said Ms. Thomas. “I look “The continuing growth of non-tradition-
and home health agencies forward to working closely with my new al capital providers creates attractive
(www.encorerehabilitation.net). team to offer a broader capability set opportunities to develop bespoke struc-
and further maximize value for clients.” tured finance solutions for our clients,
Revelstoke invests from $10 million to however successfully accessing this
$250 million in companies that have at “We are delighted to welcome Kathleen capital requires deep market knowledge
least $5 million of EBITDA. Sectors of on board. She and Richard Mead, our and industry relationships,” said Scott
interest include healthcare services and long-tenured Managing Director and B2B Adelson, Co-President and Co-Head of
products; transportation and logistics; specialist, together bring a formida- Corporate Finance. “Heather brings
specialty distribution; energy and ble depth of experience and portfolio those qualities to our capital markets
energy services; building products; of successful transactions across the team. Her decades of experience and
business and outsourced services; B2B media, information and marketing excellent cultural fit with our passionate
marketing services; financial services; sectors, with a special focus on events, approach to client service will be bene-
industrial services; and medical technol- that is unmatched in the industry,” said ficial to our clients and to the continued
ogy. The firm was founded in Wilma Jordan, Founder & CEO of JEGI. growth of the business.”
2013 and is headquartered in Denver
(www.revelstokecp.com). JEGI is one of the top The capital markets group of Houli-
investment banks serving han Lokey has nearly 35 professionals
Kathleen Thomas Joins JEGI the media, information, globally and over the past 12 months
Media investment marketing, software and the group has raised approximately $5
bank JEGI has added tech-enabled services sectors. JEGI billion for clients across 29 transactions.
Kathleen Thomas as a has completed more than 600 M&A and
Managing Director. Ms. financing transactions, serving global Houlihan Lokey (NYSE:
Thomas is an experi- corporations; middle‐market and emerg- HLI) provides mergers and
enced B2B media and ing companies; entrepreneurial owners acquisitions, capital mar-
events M&A banker and and founders; and private equity and kets, financial restructuring,
venture capital firms. JEGI has offices valuation, and strategic con-
Kathleen Thomas she will be based in in New York and Boston (www.jegi.com). sulting services to private equity firms,
JEGI’s headquarters in New York. corporations, institutions, and govern-
Heather Smith to Head Structured ments worldwide. The firm has offices
Ms. Thomas has over 20 years of ex- Equity at HL in the United States, Europe, and the
perience specializing in mergers and The capital markets group of investment Asia-Pacific region and is headquartered
acquisitions advisory across the busi- bank Houlihan Lokey has hired Heather in Los Angeles (www.HL.com).
ness-to-business and consumer media, Smith as a Managing Director and Head
communications and marketing services of Structured Equity. Ms. Smith will fo- New MD at Insignia Capital
sectors, with expertise in content and cus on providing equity capital to corpo- Lower middle-market
information, trade shows, conferences, rate and financial sponsor backed clients investor Insignia Capital
digital media and marketing, and the for acquisition finance, growth capital Group has promoted Tif-
outsourced services that support these and balance sheet recapitalizations. She
types of businesses. is based in the firm’s New York office. fany Obenchain to Managing Director.

Prior to joining JEGI, Ms. Thomas was a “Tiffany is an outstand-
Managing Partner at media investment
bank Drake Star Partners. Before that, Ms. Smith has over 20 ing member of the
she led the media and marketing ser-
vices practice at media investment bank years of experience in Insignia team and plays
Berkery Noyes for 12 years, and earlier
she was with Veronis Suhler Stevenson. the private placement an instrumental role in

During her career Ms. Thomas has industry, having raised all aspects of our firm,”
worked on more than 100 transactions,
including deals involving Informa, Thom- approximately $12 bil- said David Lowe, CEO
son Reuters, Euromoney, Wolters Kluwer,
LexisNexis, Emerald Expositions, and lion in equity and debt and Partner of Insignia. Tiffany Obenchain
many others.
Heather Smith capital for companies “Tiffany consistently
“I am thrilled to join JEGI and its unique in the US, Europe and
investment banking platform, where I exhibits the kind of te-
can leverage my advisory experience
and deep network of industry rela- South America. She joins Houlihan Lokey nacity and charisma that we value highly

from Sagent Advisors where she was a at Insignia. She is a proven professional

Managing Director and Head of the firm’s who embodies our core values at all

private financing solutions group which times. We look forward to her continued

raised equity and equity-linked securi- success.”

ties for late stage companies. Earlier in

her career she was with Deutsche Bank, Ms. Obenchain joined Insignia in 2014
and is responsible for deal origination,
Greentech Capital, and Credit Suisse. evaluation and execution. Earlier in her
career she was with Lake Capital, where
Ms. Smith has a BA in Economics from

Harvard University and an MBA from

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL 35 June 2017

Movers & Shakers

she focused on investments in ser-
vice-based companies, and HarbourVest
Partners, where she focused on direct
co-investments in growth equity, buyout
and mezzanine transactions. Ms. Oben-
chain began her career as an investment
banking analyst at JPMorgan. She has a
BA from Northwestern University and an
MBA from Harvard Business School.

Insignia Capital Group invests in lower
middle-market companies that have
from $5 million to $30 million of EBITDA.
Sectors of interest include business
services, consumer, and healthcare. The
firm is based near San Francisco in Wal-
nut Creek, CA (www.insigniacap.com).

PRIVATE EQUITY PROFESSIONAL © 2017 Private Equity Professional | May 3, 2017

36 June 2017

June 2017

Inside:

Really interesting
facts about finances

June 2017

Inside:

Interesting facts
about finances

June 2017

Inside:

Interesting facts
about finances