Post Capital Partners has sold BHS Specialty Chemicals to DuBois Chemicals, a portfolio company of The Jordan Company.
BHS is a manufacturer, blender and distributor of specialty chemicals approved and controlled for use in the food processing and water treatment industries. The company, founded in 1998, has a SQF 2000 Level II certification from the Safe Quality Food Institute and has facilities in Salt Lake City, UT; Nampa, ID (west of Boise); Fort Lupton, CO (near Denver); and Tacoma, WA (www.BHSspecialtychemicals.com).
Post Capital acquired BHS in July 2010 in partnership with chemical industry veteran Phil Johnson and BHS’ founders, Bruce Schechinger and Michael Merlo. Mr. Johnson became Chairman and CEO of BHS under Post Capital’s “Executive-First” strategy, in which it partners with senior industry executives in sourcing, evaluating, acquiring and then leading portfolio companies.
“When I first met Post Capital, I had a vision for the specialty chemical industry and an overwhelming desire to be both a CEO and owner and not just a ‘hired gun.’ Post Capital believed in me and provided the resources to help identify and acquire BHS,” said Mr. Johnson. “After the recapitalization, Post Capital provided the financial support and strategic guidance to help management execute on the plan and to transform the business, including the execution of three accretive add-on acquisitions.”
“We are proud of our partnership with BHS and its management team,” said Michael Pfeffer, Co-founder and Managing Director of Post Capital. “Phil executed on his vision of transforming BHS from primarily a commodity distribution business into a leading specialty chemical company for cleaning and sanitation and water treatment for the food processing sector.”
Post Capital invests from $5 million to $15 million of equity in companies with $10 million to $150 million of revenue and a minimum EBITDA of $2 million. Industries of interest include services, manufacturing and distribution businesses. The firm was founded by Mitch Davidson and Michael Pfeffer and is based in New York (www.postcp.com).
DuBois Chemicals, the buyer of BHS, is a provider of customized specialty chemical solutions used in a variety of applications such as metal finishing and paint pretreatment; metalworking and lubricants; water and wastewater treatment; maintenance and equipment cleaning; paper chemicals; food processing cleaning and sanitizing; and transportation cleaning. The company has more than 8,000 customers and is led by Jeff Welsh, President and CEO. DuBois is headquartered north of Cincinnati in Sharonville, OH (www.duboischemicals.com). The Jordan Company acquired DuBois Chemicals from Aurora Capital in March 2017. Aurora Capital acquired DuBois Chemicals in December 2012 from The Riverside Company.
Greentech Capital Advisors (www.greentechcapital.com) served as financial advisor to BHS on the transaction and Crowe Horwath provided accounting and tax advice.
The sale of BHS is Post Capital’s second exit in just over six months and follows the sale of Invo HealthCare Associates in December 2016 to the Wicks Group of Companies.
© 2017 Private Equity Professional | July 19, 2017
