Gryphon Investors Acquires Valley Services

It was announced today that TrustHouse Services Group, a food service company and a portfolio company of Gryphon Investors, has acquired Valley Services, a national food service management company. CIT Group provided financing in support of this transaction.

Valley Services is a national food service management company that serves nearly 300,000 meals per day across the United States and employs more than 2,500 production employees, 50 registered dietitians, and 200 managers. The company has more than 200 client accounts, including hospitals, colleges and universities, industrial cafeterias, commercial and office building cafeterias, senior nutrition services, meals on wheels programs, correctional facilities, and daycare facilities. Valley Services was founded in 1960, and is based in Jackson, MS (www.valleyinc.com).

TrustHouse Services Group provides outsourced food management services to educational institutions, healthcare facilities and businesses and manages over 400 client accounts across more than 30 states. With the acquisition of Valley Services, TrustHouse significantly increased its geographic footprint and will have annual revenue in excess of $400 million and operations in 44 states. TrustHouse is headquartered in Charlotte, NC (www.trusthouseservices.com).

CIT Group has arranged a $117.5 million senior secured credit facility to TrustHouse Services Group to finance its acquisition of Valley Services. CIT Sponsor Finance served as Joint Lead Arranger, Joint Bookrunner, and Administrative Agent for the transaction. Financing was provided by CIT Bank, a wholly-owned subsidiary of CIT. “We are pleased to provide this financing to support TrustHouse’s acquisition of Valley Services,” said Eric Toizer, Managing Director of CIT Sponsor Finance. “TrustHouse now ranks as the nation’s sixth-largest food-services provider and the fourth-largest in the healthcare and education markets.”

Gryphon Investors makes leveraged acquisitions and growth investments in middle-market companies. The firm invests from $25 to $100 million of capital in companies with sales ranging from $25 to $250 million. Sectors of interest include business services, consumer and retail, automotive, chemical, general manufacturing, health care and hotels. The firm is based in San Francisco, CA (www.gryphoninvestors.com).

“Through the acquisition of Valley Services, TrustHouse is continuing its growth strategy to create a world-class food services business. We selected CIT to help lead the financing of this transaction because of the firm’s proven track record of supporting our businesses. Our longstanding relationship and familiarity with the CIT deal team served to provide flexibility and structuring guidance, which helped us close this transaction in an efficient manner,” said Keith Stimson, a Partner at Gryphon Investors.