Brown Gibbons Lang & Company was the exclusive financial advisor to Profile Products, a maker of products that are used for soil modification, erosion and sediment control, and vegetation establishment, on its recent sale to Platte River Equity. Profile Products has been a portfolio company of Mid Oaks Investments since 1986.
Profile’s products are designed to minimize soil loss and accelerate seed germination and are used in a variety of applications including private and civil construction, energy, mining, landfill, agriculture, horticulture, sports fields, golf courses, and retail lawn and garden. The company is headquartered in the Chicago suburb of Buffalo Grove, IL and has additional facilities in North Carolina, Tennessee, Mississippi, and California (www.profileproducts.com).
BGL is a mid-market investment bank that specializes in mergers and acquisitions advisory services, debt and equity placements, financial restructuring advice, and valuations and fairness opinions. The firm has industry teams that are active in Consumer Products & Retail Services, Energy & Environmental Services, Healthcare & Life Sciences, Human Capital Management Outsourcing, Industrials, Metals & Metals Processing, Plastics & Packaging, and Real Estate. BGL was founded in 1989 and has offices in Chicago and Cleveland (www.bglco.com).
Brown Gibbons Lang & Company’s (BGL) Industrials practice and its Environmental Services practice worked together on this transaction. “BGL’s deep industry knowledge and understanding of the highly engineered solutions we develop, as well as their buyer relationships and effort throughout the process, were instrumental in achieving an attractive transaction for our shareholders,” said John Schoch, Profile’s CEO.
Mid Oaks makes control and non-control investments in companies with annual revenues of $25 million to $250 million. The firm has a preference for manufacturing companies but will also consider distribution or service company opportunities. The firm is the family office for the Kocourek family and is led by Wayne Kocourek, its Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. The firm was founded in 1986 and is based in the Chicago suburb of Buffalo Grove (www.midoaks.com).
“BGL drove value at each stage of the process, and we are delighted with the outcome for Profile,” said Mike Kocourek, President of Mid Oaks Investments.
Platte River, the buyer of Profile Products, makes equity investments of $10 million to $50 million in lower middle-market companies with enterprise values generally between $20 million and $250 million. The firm focuses on investing in the aerospace and transportation; energy and industrial products and services; and chemicals, metals, minerals and agriculture sectors. The firm invested capital out of its third fund, Platte River Equity III, LP, to acquire Profile Products. Platte River is based in Denver (www.platteriverequity.com).
“As the clear market leader serving a diverse set of growing end markets and customers, we are enthusiastic about our investment in Profile Products,” said Kris Whalen, Managing Director of Platte River. “With a strong foundation and active pipeline of new products, the company is positioned to better serve its existing customers and penetrate new markets. We look forward to helping John Schoch and the rest of the management team take full advantage of the available growth opportunities.”
2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 6-2-15
