January 9, 2015
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Archives for January 9, 2015

Superior Capital Partners Acquires Daystar Desserts

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daystar deserts nf2Superior Capital Partners has acquired the assets of Daystar Desserts as an add-on acquisition to its portfolio company, Dianne’s Fine Desserts.  With the acquisition of Daystar, Dianne’s now serves customers in the three industry channels – foodservice, restaurant and retail.

Daystar Desserts develops and bakes branded and private label cheesecakes, bar cakes, mason jar cakes and individual desserts for retail, grocery and in-store bakery channel customers. The company is based north of Richmond in Ashland, VA (www.daystardesserts.com).  Dianne’s acquired Daystar from John Fernandez, a bakery industry executive who will now lead Dianne’s retail initiatives.

Dianne’s provides gourmet frozen thaw-and-serve desserts for the foodservice industry and national restaurant chains.  Superior acquired the gourmet desserts division of Heinz North America in May 2012 and renamed the company Dianne’s Fine Desserts.  The company has approximately 500 employees and is headquartered at its bakery in Newburyport, MA with a second bakery operation in Le Center, MN (www.diannesfinedesserts.com) (www.worldsbestcheesecake.com).

“This is a very exciting acquisition for Dianne’s.  Daystar’s strong presence in the retail channel complements Dianne’s leading position in the foodservice and restaurant channels,” said Dianne’s Chief Executive Officer Mike Knowles.  “Daystar has proven itself through innovative product development and packaging concepts along with excellent customer service.  Daystar’s bakery in Richmond also expands our geographic footprint from the Northeast and Midwest to the Southeast.”

mark carroll nf1“The Daystar acquisition fulfills the strategic goal of having a growing presence in all three potential industry channels.  The achievements of Dianne’s represent Superior’s core investment thesis as a special situations fund,” said Mark Carroll, Superior’s Managing Partner.  “Since acquiring Dianne’s from Heinz in 2012, we have executed a complex corporate carve-out, brought in a new leadership team, returned 100% of invested capital and created a $100 million platform business.  We are proud to be partners with the Dianne’s management team and are extremely excited about the future.”

Superior Capital Partners invests in niche manufacturers, value-added distributors and specialty service companies with annual revenues between $10 million and $150 million. Superior will invest up to $15 million of equity per transaction in management buyouts, corporate spin-offs, recapitalizations, family successions, acquisitions out of bankruptcy and debt purchases. The firm is based in Detroit (www.superiorfund.com).

This transaction, which closed on New Year’s Eve, represents the nineteenth acquisition from Superior’s 2008 inaugural fund.

© 2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 1-9-15

Revelstoke Acquires Crossroads Treatment Centers

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crossroads nf1Revelstoke Capital Partners has acquired Crossroads Treatment Centers, a provider of substance abuse treatment services.

Crossroads is a regional provider of substance abuse treatment services through its outpatient treatment clinics in the southeastern United States. Crossroads provides physician oversight, counseling and medication-assisted treatment through outpatient program for persons suffering from opioid dependence. The company was founded in 2007 and is based in Greenville, SC (www.crossroadstreatmentcenters.com).

“The resources and expertise that Revelstoke brings to our team allows us to continue our focus on growth while maintaining the quality and efficacy of our treatment program,” said Dr. Rupert McCormac IV, Founder, CEO, and Chief Medical Officer of Crossroads.

Revelstoke’s investment strategy for Crossroads includes providing strategic guidance and additional capital to accelerate its organic growth and to pursue add-on acquisitions.  “We are excited about the prospect of working with an extremely talented and experienced management team to grow the company and further solidify its position as a leader in the substance abuse treatment industry,” said Mark King, CEO, Managing Partner and Co-Founder of Revelstoke. “Crossroads offers its patients a path to end the destructive cycle of emotional, physical and financial calamity that chemical dependence causes, and Revelstoke is enthusiastic to partner in this continued effort.”

Revelstoke invests from $10 million to $250 million in companies that have at least $5 million of EBITDA.  Sectors of interest include healthcare services and products; transportation and logistics; specialty distribution; energy and energy services; building products; business and outsourced services; marketing services; financial services; industrial services; and medical technology. The firm was founded by Managing Partners – Mark King, Dale Meyer, and Simon Bachleda – and is headquartered in Denver (www.revelstokecp.com).

Quadriga Partners, an investment bank with offices in Denver and Atlanta, served as the exclusive financial advisor to Crossroads (www.quadrigapartners.com). Winston & Strawn acted as exclusive legal advisor to Revelstoke.

© 2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 1-9-15

KRG Acquires Beacon Security

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beacon nf1Convergint Technologies, a portfolio company of KRG Capital Partners, has acquired UK-based Beacon Security and Communications.

Beacon is a security services provider serving global Fortune 500 companies. Services include system design, integration, support, and training. The company has approximately 50 employees and was founded in 1994.  Beacon is headquartered south of London in Crowborough, UK (www.beaconsecurity.com).

ted nark nf1“Beacon is an important acquisition for Convergint and is consistent with the company’s strategic plan to expand through the acquisition of best-in-class security solutions providers and better serve Convergint’s multi-national customers with added geographic capabilities,” said Ted Nark, Managing Director of KRG.

Convergint Technologies is a system integrator focused on electronic security, fire and life safety, and building automation. The company was founded in 2001 and has 1100 employees in 26 cities throughout the US and Canada. Convergint is headquartered in the Chicago suburb of Schaumburg, IL (www.convergint.com).

“We are servicing more global customers today and continue to build-out our worldwide service capabilities. After expanding into Asia Pacific in 2013, the addition of Beacon now provides Convergint the ability to service global clients in the UK and throughout Europe,” said Dan Moceri, Executive Chairman of Convergint Technologies.

KRG Capital specializes in acquiring and recapitalizing unique and profitable middle-market companies that have from $10 million to $100 million or more of EBITDA.  Founded in 1996, KRG has $4.4 billion of capital under management and is based in Denver (www.krgcapital.com).

KRG made an investment in Convergint in August 2012, representing the 12th of 15 platform company investments made to date in KRG Fund IV. Beacon represents KRG’s 211th acquisition since inception.

© 2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 1-9-15

Beekman Closes Third Fund at Hard Cap

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beekman nf1Lower middle-market investor The Beekman Group has held a first and final closing of Beekman Investment Partners III, LP (Fund III ) at its hard cap of $230 million.

Fund III’s strategy, as with prior funds, will be to invest in lower middle-market services companies with enterprise values ranging from $15 million to $75 million. Sectors of interest include consumer, healthcare and business services.

Like other financial and operating themed private equity firms, Beekman works with its management teams to guide growth initiatives and to improve operations. The firm has operating executives that actively engage in industry analysis, investment sourcing, diligence and portfolio company oversight.

The Beekman Group is led by Founder and Managing Partner, John Troiano, a former partner at Onex Corporation, and by Managing Directors, Andrew Marolda and Andrew Brown.

john troiano nf1“We are very pleased by the strong investor interest and a single close at our hard cap of $230 million after just three months of fund raising, said Mr. Troiano.  “We have remained focused on investing in great companies within our core strategy while continuing to generate top quartile returns for our limited partners over the past 10 years. We appreciate the strong support from our existing and new limited partners.”

Investor demand for Fund III was more than double the hard cap amount of $230 million.  Limited partners include the usual combination of institutional investors including endowments, family offices, asset management firms, insurance companies and pension funds.  Notably, Fund III’s general partner, and some of its affiliates and associates, committed just over $34 million or 15% of total commitments.

The Beekman Group makes control investments from $5 million to $25 million in privately held companies, family businesses in transition, operating divisions of large companies or small public companies looking to privatize. Typical acquisitions have revenues from $10 million to $200 million and enterprise values of $15 million to $75 million.  The Beekman Group was founded in 2004 and is based in New York (www.thebeekmangroup.com).

Sparring Partners served as the exclusive financial advisor and placement agent to The Beekman Group for Fund III.  Sparring Partners is an investment bank providing mergers and acquisitions advisory and capital raising services to technology-enabled companies and private equity firms. The firm was founded in 2001 by Warren Spar and is headquartered in New York (www.sparringpartners.com).

The Beekman Group’s previous fund, Beekman Investment Partners II, LP, also used Sparring Partners as its placement agent and held its initial closing in 2011 and final closing in December 2012 with $100 million in commitments and has made seven platform investments.

© 2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 1-9-15

Former Grainger President Joins Warburg Pincus

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warburg nf2Warburg Pincus has added Michael Pulick as an Industry Advisor to the firm’s Consumer, Industrial and Services (CIS) Group.  Mr. Pulick will be involved in Warburg Pincus’ CIS portfolio companies and will also identify and evaluate new investment opportunities in the distribution, industrial and services sectors.

“Mike has significant experience leading and growing industrial and distribution businesses in the US and globally, with experience in customer innovation, product management and multi-channel sales.  The diversity and depth of his expertise in these areas will benefit our portfolio companies and their management teams, and will also be invaluable to our pursuit of future investment opportunities,” said Uzair Dossani, Managing Director, Consumer, Industrial and Services, Warburg Pincus.

michael pulick nf1Mr. Pulick was most recently the President of the US and then international business for W.W. Grainger, a supplier and distributor of maintenance, repair and operating products.  In his fourteen years at Grainger, Mr. Pulick held increasing levels of responsibility in customer service, product management, merchandising and supplier management.  Before his time at Grainger, he spent more than a decade at General Electric, including managing roles in its industrial systems business.  Mr. Pulick earned his BS in Electrical Engineering from Michigan Tech and his MBA from the University of Chicago.

“I share Warburg Pincus’ values and passion for building and growing durable businesses of scale, and couldn’t be more pleased to support the firm and its portfolio companies,” said Mr. Pulick.  “I look forward to bringing my experience within large multi-channel business to bear as I begin this new role as an Industry Advisor.”

Warburg Pincus’ investments in industrial, distribution, and services companies have included Aramark, Polypore International, Scotsman Industries and TransDigm Group, and most recently, TriMark, Total Safety and Wencor Group.

Warburg Pincus has more than $37 billion in assets under management and has raised 14 private equity funds which have invested more than $50 billion in approximately 720 companies in 35 countries. The firm was founded in 1966 and is headquartered in New York with offices in Amsterdam, Beijing, Frankfurt, Hong Kong, London, Luxembourg, Mumbai, Mauritius, San Francisco, Sao Paulo and Shanghai (www.warburgpincus.com).

© 2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 1-9-15

D.A. Davidson Expands Investment Bank to Denver

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dadavidson nf1Investment bank D.A. Davidson & Co. has hired two industry veterans, Steven Gilbertson and Tim Sznewajs, to launch the firm’s Denver investment banking office. As managing directors, Mr. Gilbertson will focus on the energy industry and Mr. Sznewajs will specialize in the engineering & construction sector. While D.A. Davidson is presently represented by other divisions in Denver, the additions of Mr. Gilbertson and Mr. Sznewajs represent the firm’s first investment banking presence.

“We are pleased to announce the addition of Steven and Tim to our investment banking group,” said Rory McKinney, co-head of investment banking. “A critical component of the expansion of our investment banking practice is hiring and retaining talented bankers who are industry experts and can provide the knowledge and experience to our clients we pride ourselves on.  Steven and Tim will further strengthen our infrastructure group, adding significant private financing, public offering and M&A advisory experience to our energy and engineering & construction groups.”

D.A. Davidson’s investment banking team underwrites public offerings, serves as a placement agent for private financings and advises companies on mergers and acquisitions and has offices in Great Falls, MT; Costa Mesa, CA; Chicago; Baltimore; Portland; Salt Lake City; and Seattle.  D.A. Davidson & Co. is headquartered in Great Falls, MT (www.dadco.com).

Mr. Gilbertson was recently an executive director in Oppenheimer & Co.’s energy investment banking team, completing over 100 transactions with a combined value in excess of $25 billion. These transactions ranged from capital raises for Master Limited Partnerships to M&A and restructuring advisory for exploration and production companies. Mr. Gilbertson has over 18 years of experience in investment banking, corporate development, and engineering.  He graduated from Princeton with a BS in chemical engineering and from Columbia with an MBA in finance.

Mr. Sznewajs recently served as the co-head and senior managing director of FMI Capital Advisors. During his nine year tenure at FMI, he worked with engineering & construction industry firms, originating and leading numerous infrastructure industry transactions. Prior to joining FMI, he held a variety of positions in industry and investment banking, including transactional experience that began at Goldman, Sachs & Co., having advised on more than $8 billion of buy- and sell-side engagements as a member of the firm’s mergers & acquisitions department. Mr. Sznewajs graduated from the University of Notre Dame with a BA in Economics and received an MBA from Northwestern.

“We are proud to solidify our presence in the rapidly growing economic environment in Colorado,” said Monte Giese, co-head of investment banking. “Both of these individuals are strong additions to our investment banking practice and represent the values of our platform.”

© 2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 1-9-15

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