The Riverside Company has acquired Grace Hill, a provider of training services to the apartment industry.
Grace Hill provides training products to owners, employees and managers working in the apartment industry. Grace Hill allows property managers to train employees with an on-demand service so that they are compliant with rules and regulations on topics such as Fair Housing, OSHA, sexual harassment, and more. Grace Hill currently serves more than 400,000 customers worldwide who collectively take more than 850,000 courses annually. The company was founded in 1998 and is based in Augusta, GA (www.gracehill.com).
“Grace Hill helps employees and owners of multi-tenant buildings protect their investments and their reputations,” said Riverside Managing Partner Loren Schlachet. “Their training is easy to use and comprehend, but it tackles complex legal, regulatory and professional issues.”
According to Riverside, though it is currently a leader in the market, Grace Hill has room to expand as customers and prospects switch from in-house training to the more effective online services Grace Hill offers. Riverside expects to invest in growing Grace Hill through continued investment in content, new products and technology and sales and marketing capabilities.
“Grace Hill provides tremendous value for its customers,” said Riverside Partner Brian Sauer. “The multi-family housing industry has extensive training needs, and Grace Hill provides a simple one-stop shop for consistent and extensive training offerings. Their extremely high customer retention rate is a great testimonial for Grace Hill’s value.”
The Riverside Company is a private equity firm focused on the smaller end of the middle market (“SEMM”). Riverside specializes in investing in SEMM companies (those valued up to $250 million) and partners with management teams to build companies through acquisitions and value-added growth. Since 1988, the firm has invested in more than 340 transactions with a total enterprise value of more than $6 billion. The firm’s current portfolio includes more than 70 companies. The Riverside Company is headquartered in New York with additional offices in Atlanta, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and London (www.riversidecompany.com).
Working with Mr. Schlachet and Mr. Sauer on the transaction for Riverside were Operating Partner Mike Eblin, Vice President John McKernan and Associate Ryan Philyaw. Origination Principal Jeremy Holland sourced the transaction for Riverside. Riverside Micro-Cap Fund Centralized CFO Dan Stankey served as finance director, and Vice President Dan Haynes worked on financing the transaction for the firm.
Freeport Capital (www.freeportfinancial.com) provided financing for the transaction. Riverside was advised by Jones Day and Deloitte.
2014 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 8-20-14
