Ares Management and Harvest Partners will acquire Valet Waste, a portfolio company of New Mountain Capital. Valet Waste is a national provider of doorstep waste and recycling collection to the multi-family housing industry.
New Mountain acquired its ownership position in Valet Waste in August 2007 through the acquisition of its parent company Oakleaf Global. In July 2011, New Mountain sold Oakleaf Global to Waste Management however it retained Valet Waste as a portfolio investment.
Today, Valet Waste is a national provider of doorstep trash and recycling collection to the multifamily housing industry. The company contracts with the 
management companies and owner groups of multifamily housing projects to collect trash on a daily basis from company issued trash receptacles placed by residents outside their doors. The company services over 400 management companies that represent over 3.4 million units in over 25 major markets. The company also offers maintenance services including nightly maintenance, apartment cleaning, apartment turns and porter services through its Maintenance Plus product which was launched in 2014. The company is led by CEO Shawn Handrahan. Valet Waste was founded in 1995 and is based in Tampa (www.valetwaste.com).
“New Mountain Capital has played a vital role in growing Valet Waste during its ownership period – and we thank them for a very successful partnership,” said Mr. Handrahan. “With the growth opportunities in front of us, this is an opportunity to take the next step and further our position as a market leader in amenity and maintenance services to the multifamily housing industry.”
New Mountain’s investment in Valet Waste was led by Bert Notini, Managing Director. “It was a pleasure to work with the Valet Waste management team as they defined the market, built their business and achieved significant sustainable growth,” said Mr. Notini. “We wish Valet Waste continued success in its next stage of expansion with Ares and Harvest.”
Ares Management – with $88 billion in assets under management – invests in private equity, leveraged loans, high-yield bonds, distressed debt and private debt. Within Ares, its private equity group manages $10 billion of assets and is currently investing its fourth private equity fund with $4.7 billion of committed capital. Ares Management is headquartered in Los Angeles with offices in New York, London, Chicago, and Atlanta (www.aresmgmt.com).
“Valet Waste is a leader in its industry, with a longstanding track record of delivering high-quality service to its customers and providing a top-rated amenity to residents,” said Matt Cwiertnia, Partner in the private equity group of Ares Management. “We are excited to partner with the Valet Waste management team and look forward to supporting the company in its next phase of growth.”
Harvest Partners – which is partnering on this transaction with Ares – currently manages approximately $2 billion of equity and structured capital and is investing its sixth private equity fund. Harvest targets investments in companies with $20 million to $75 million of EBITDA and total enterprise values of $100 million to $750 million. Sectors of interest include industrial & energy services; manufacturing & distribution; consumer & business services; and healthcare services. The firm was founded in 1981 and is based in New York with an additional office in Palo Alto (www.harvestpartners.com).
“We are delighted to join Ares and the senior management team as long-term investors in the company,” said Michael DeFlorio, Senior Managing Director of Harvest Partners. “CEO Shawn Handrahan and his team have built a unique business that provides exceptional value to customers and residents. We are excited to invest alongside this first class team to build upon Valet Waste’s leadership position in the market and expand services more broadly across the multifamily housing industry.”
Robert W. Baird & Co. acted as a financial advisor to Valet Waste and New Mountain. Proskauer Rose was the legal advisor to Ares Management and Harvest Partners. White & Case was the legal counsel to Harvest Partners. Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson were the legal advisor to Valet Waste.
© 2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 9-28-15
