Blue Sage Capital has acquired Americo Manufacturing Company, a manufacturer of nonwoven synthetic and natural fiber floor pads, hand pads, utility pads, floor matting, and other cleaning accessories.
Americo’s products are environmentally friendly and 100% of the polyester fiber used in the manufacture of its nonwoven pads are produced using recycled material from post-industrial and post-consumer waste. Aside from nonwovens, Americo also designs and manufactures a line of vinyl-backed, walk-off floor mats for use in industrial, promotional, retail, custom and specialty market applications. Americo’s products are currently sold in all 50 states and in over 70 countries around the world. Americo is headquartered near Atlanta in Acworth, GA, with additional facilities in Cartersville, GA and Los Angeles, CA (www.americomfg.com).
Americo has been owned by the Rones family since its founding in 1969 by Jim Rones. Jim’s son Richard Rones (President) and son-in-law Lenny Shutzberg (CEO) have retained a significant ownership position alongside Blue Sage Capital. “We are delighted to be partnering with Blue Sage as we continue to grow our business from the solid foundation established nearly 50 years ago. Blue Sage’s expertise of investing in family-owned businesses, along with their vast strategic and financial resources, will provide us the ability to significantly increase the growth trajectory for our company,” said Mr. Shutzberg.
“Americo is the quintessential investment for Blue Sage Capital,” said Jim McBride, Co-Founder and Managing Member of Blue Sage. “We look for partnerships with market-leading, family-owned and managed businesses, which have demonstrated a long-term defensible competitive advantage and established significant barriers of entry in their respective industries. Americo has a proven business model and an extremely capable management team. Highlighted by the receipt of the only Green Seal Certification issued to any floor pad manufacturer in the world, the company continues to demonstrate innovative leadership in the cleaning industry. We are excited about our new partnership with Americo and look forward to working with their entire management team.”
Blue Sage Capital specializes in growth, recapitalization and buyout financings of smaller middle-market companies. Most of Blue Sage’s investments are in established, profitable companies with $20 million to $100 million of revenue and $3 million to $12 million of EBITDA. Blue Sage invests in a variety of industries, with each initial investment in a company ranging from $10 million to $15 million. The firm is based in Austin, TX (www.bluesage.com).
Senior financing for this acquisition was provided by Cadence Bank (www.cadencebank.com). BDO USA (www.bdo.com) provided accounting support to Blue Sage and Queen Saenz + Schutz (www.qsps-law.com) provided legal services.
© 2018 Private Equity Professional | January 10, 2018
