AssuredPartners, a portfolio company of GTCR, has acquired the Creech & Stafford Insurance Agency. The operations of Creech & Stafford will be merged into Assured’s operating subsidiary Neace Lukens.
Creech & Stafford Insurance Agency, with annual revenues of about $3 million, specializes in business insurance, including workers’ compensation, liability and group employee benefit plans; personal insurance, including home, automobile and renters’ insurance; and life and health services, including life insurance and long-term care. Creech & Stafford was founded in 1982 and has locations in Lexington and Hazard, KY. The firm is led by partners Lloyd Stafford and Doug Creech (www.creechandstafford.com).
As part of the acquisition, 18 Creech & Stafford employees will join Neace Lukens. The Creech & Stafford Insurance Agency’s Lexington office will merge with the existing Neace Lukens Lexington branch this summer. The Neace Lukens Lexington office operates under the leadership of Managing Director Bryan Raisor.
Neace Lukens offers commercial property and casualty insurance, employee benefits programs, risk management consulting and personal insurance products. The company is headquartered in Louisville, KY and has more than 35 offices throughout Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Tennessee, Georgia, Arkansas, Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana and South Carolina. Neace Lukens was acquired by AssuredPartners in September 2011 (www.neacelukens.com).
AssuredPartners acquires and invests in insurance brokerage businesses (property and casualty, employee benefits, surety, managing general agencies, and wholesalers) across the United States and in the UK. From its founding in 2011, AssuredPartners has acquired more than 50 insurance firms and today has approximately $325 million in annual revenue with more than 80 offices in 26 states as well as a London office. The company is led by Jim Henderson (CEO) and Tom Riley (COO) and is headquartered north of Orlando in Lake Mary, FL (www.assuredptr.com).
“The Creech & Stafford acquisition supports the AssuredPartners goal of strengthening our presence in existing markets,” said Mr. Riley. “We are pleased to welcome Creech & Stafford to the rapidly growing AssuredPartners family.”
GTCR pioneered the investment strategy of identifying and partnering with executives to acquire and build companies through a combination of acquisitions and internal growth. The firm currently has nearly $11 billion in assets under management. Since its inception in 1980, GTCR has invested more than $10 billion in over 200 companies. The firm is based in Chicago (www.gtcr.com).
© 2014 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 2-19-14