Center Rock Capital Partners has acquired LINC Systems, a distributor of fastener, packaging and MRO tools and supplies.
Center Rock invested in LINC out of its inaugural fund, Center Rock Capital Partners Fund I LP, which closed earlier this month at an oversubscribed $580 million of limited partner capital commitments. The firm began fundraising in late 2017 with a target of $450 million.
LINC’s fastening products and industrial supplies are sold to a range of industrial end markets including pallet, furniture, housing, construction and general industrial. The company sells its products in more than 22 states and has distribution centers in High Point, NC and Westfield, IN. The company, founded in 1995, has approximately 100 employees and is headquartered north of Indianapolis in Westfield, IN (www.lincsystems.com).
Center Rock is partnering Ted Azar, the founder and President of LINC, on this transaction and he will continue to lead the company. “At the core of everything we do is our commitment to great people and great customer service,” said Mr. Azar. “I chose Center Rock as my partner because they understand that LINC’s success is the result of our investment in our employees who, in turn, provide unmatched technical expertise and service to our customers.”
Center Rock was founded in August 2017 and is led by partners Ian Kirson and Terry Theodore. The firm makes control and non-control equity investments in North American-based industrial manufacturing, industrial services and industrial distribution companies that have revenues of $25 million to $500 million and EBITDA of up to $50 million (including negative EBITDA). Investments types include management buyouts, corporate divestitures and carve-outs, recapitalizations, under-performing businesses, restructurings and bankruptcies. Center Rock operates out of two offices – one in Chicago and one in the Detroit suburb of Bloomfield Hills (www.centerrockcp.com).
“LINC represents a unique opportunity to partner with the highly successful founder of a market leading business to pursue opportunities for growth. With LINC’s strong ‘customer-first’ culture, and dedication to character and values, we are thrilled to partner with Ted and his team,” said Mr. Theodore.
Center Rock is moving quickly to grow LINC and just yesterday announced that it has closed the add-on acquisition of West Chester, OH-based Packaging Systems Design (PSD), a distributor of industrial packaging equipment and packaging products, specializing in end of line automatic packaging equipment (www.callpsd.com). “PSD is highly complementary to LINC’s core business,” added Mr. Theodore. “The acquisition of PSD allows LINC to continue to build scale and strengthens LINC’s position within the industrial distribution industry. Both LINC’s and PSD’s management teams have done a great job and we are excited to support their continued growth.”
The PSD team, led by President Keith Gordon, will continue to run the business as a segment of LINC and will lead the efforts to expand LINC’s presence in the packaging space.
© 2018 Private Equity Professional | September 20, 2018
Abacus Finance Group was the Administrative Agent and Lead Arranger for $20 million in senior secured credit facilities to back the recapitalization of AccountabilIT by WestView Capital Partners. Abacus also made an equity co-investment to support the transaction.
“It was great to work once again with the WestView principals, some of whom we have known for more than a decade,” said Tim Clifford, President and CEO of Abacus Finance. “They have consistently brought us attractive opportunities like AccountabilIT that align well with our investment strategy.”
Proceeds from this investment were also used by AccountabilIT to acquire Little Rock, AR-based ClearPointe Technologies, a provider of IT managed services for data center environments around the world. The company, led by CEO Jeff Johnson, currently manages servers, applications, and connectivity in both public and private clouds, hybrid clouds as well as on-premises data centers (
“We have enjoyed a longstanding relationship with Abacus,” said Westview Principal Greg Thomas. “As in past transactions, they took the time to fully understand the cash flow needs of the business and provided a flexible financing solution that supports growth.”
WestView makes majority and minority investments of $10 million to $60 million in lower middle market growth companies. Sectors of interest include business services, software and IT services, consumer, healthcare technology and outsourcing and growth industrial. Target companies will have operating profits between $3 million and $20 million.
Abacus provides cash flow-based senior financing to private equity-sponsored, lower-middle market companies that have EBITDA between $3 million and $15 million. Debt facilities can be as large as $60 million with a typical hold size ranging from $10 million to $30 million. New York-based Abacus was formed in June 2011 and is an affiliate of New York Private Bank & Trust (
“We were extremely impressed with AccountabilIT’s senior management team,” added Sean McKeever, Abacus Managing Director & COO, “and are excited to be their financing partner as they embark on the next stage of growth. As in other transactions, our success was a function of our speed, flexibility, and certainty of close – key aspects of what we call our Total Partnership Approach.”
Mason Wells has acquired Buffalo Games, a manufacturer, and marketer of jigsaw puzzles and board games, from the company’s founders Paul and Eden Dedrick. Mason Wells partnered with CEO Nagendra Raina and other members of the company’s management team on this transaction.
Buffalo Games sells its products through the mass retail, e-commerce, specialty, bookstore, grocery and craft/hobby channels. Buffalo Games was founded in 1986 and is headquartered in Buffalo, NY (
“We are thrilled to be partnering with a world-class management team at the helm of Buffalo Games,” said Ben Holbrook, Managing Director at Mason Wells. “Nagendra and his team have built a powerful innovation platform that was founded over 30 years ago by Paul and Eden Dedrick. The company’s dynamic culture and the strong relationships it has forged with licensors, retailers and suppliers, are key aspects of the company’s success and future growth opportunities. We look forward to supporting the team as they continue to drive innovation and growth in the expanding puzzle and games categories.”
Mason Wells makes investments in Midwest-based companies with revenues of $25 million to $300 million and EBITDAs of $5 million to $30 million. Sectors of interest include consumer packaged goods; packaging materials and converting; outsourced business services; and engineered products and services. In February 2016, Mason Wells held a final closing of Mason Wells Buyout Fund IV and its related Executive Buyout Fund IV with total commitments of $615 million. The firm was founded in 1998 and is based in Milwaukee (
The buy of Buffalo Games is the second gaming related transaction closed by Mason Wells recently. Earlier this month, the firm acquired EastPoint Sports, a supplier of indoor and outdoor recreational sporting goods. The company’s products are sold through both traditional retail and e-commerce channels and include bean bag toss, table tennis, volleyball and badminton nets, and indoor basketball hoops. EastPoint is headquartered in Succasunna, NJ with an additional office in Shanghai, China (
