Cortec Group has sold WU Holdco (DBA Weiman Products), a provider of cleaning products, to The Carlyle Group and TA Associates. Cortec acquired Weiman through its fifth fund in November 2013.
Weiman is a provider of branded specialty cleaning products for the consumer market under several brand names, including Weiman, Goo Gone, Magic, Stone Care International, Wright’s and Gonzo Natural Magic. Weiman’s commercial division provides specialty cleaning, sterilization and disinfectant products under the Urnex, Five Star and Micro-Scientific brands.
Weiman, led by CEO Chris Bauder, was founded in 1963 and operates from its Gurnee, IL headquarters (near Chicago), with additional facilities in Elmsford, NY (near White Plains) and Denver, CO (www.weiman.com).
During Cortec’s ownership term Weiman grew both organically and through several add-on acquisitions. In January 2014, the company acquired the cleaning products division of Homax Products (then a portfolio company of Olympus Partners) which included the brands Goo Gone, Magic, Stone Care International, Natural Magic, OOPS! Paint Remover, and Gonzo. In 2015 Weiman expanded its healthcare products line by acquiring Micro-Scientific, a supplier of intermediate, surface and high-level disinfectants and a supplier of private label detergents for surgical instrument decontamination and preservation.
“Our investments to expand the company’s leadership team, develop and launch new products, improve systems and infrastructure, build dedicated commercial and eCommerce teams, and complete several strategic acquisitions enabled management to triple the size of the business during our ownership,” said David Schnadig, a managing partner at Cortec. “We are proud to have teamed with management during the past five-plus years.” The Cortec team, in addition to Mr. Schnadig, included Jeffrey Shannon, Gene Nesbeda, Doug Kruep, Jack Miner and Jacob Grossetti.
Cortec invests in companies with revenues of $40 million to $300 million and EBITDA of $7 million to $35 million. Sectors of interest include healthcare products and services, business and consumer products, value-added distribution and specialty services. The firm was founded in 1984 and is based in New York (www.cortecgroup.com).
“Cortec was a superb partner for me and my team,” said Mr. Bauder. “Their understanding of the business and support of key initiatives have positioned us for continued growth and innovation. We have enjoyed working with the Cortec team and are eager to continue our success with our new partners at Carlyle and TA.”
Equity for the buy of Weiman will come from Carlyle Equity Opportunity Fund II, TA Associates funds and company management.
“Weiman is well positioned for continued growth both organically and through M&A,” said Carlyle Managing Director David Basto. “We will harness Carlyle’s deep industry expertise and global network to support the company in this next phase of innovation and strategic acquisition.”
The Carlyle Group (NASDAQ: CG) invests worldwide in buyouts, growth capital, real estate and leveraged finance. The firm employs approximately 1,650 people in 31 offices across six continents and is based in Washington, DC (www.carlyle.com).
“Weiman’s array of cleaning and care products are well known throughout the US and globally,” said TA Associates Managing Director William Christ. “We look forward to working with Chris Bauder and his management team in the years to come to create value for the company’s current and future customers.”
TA Associates makes buyouts and minority recapitalizations of profitable growth companies in the technology, healthcare, financial services, consumer and business services sectors. Since founding in 1968, TA has invested in over 500 companies globally and has raised more than $24 billion in capital. The firm has more than 85 investment professionals and has offices in Boston, Menlo Park, London, Mumbai and Hong Kong (www.ta.com).
Weiman was co-advised in the transaction by Robert W. Baird & Co. (www.rwbaird.com) and Duff & Phelps Securities (www.duffandphelps.com), with Jones Day (www.joneday.com) providing legal services. Sawaya Partners (www.sawayapartners.com) was the financial advisor to The Carlyle Group and TA Associates on this transaction. Kirkland & Ellis (www.kirkland.com) was the legal advisor to The Carlyle Group and Goodwin Procter (www.goodwinlaw.com) served as legal advisor to TA Associates.
© 2019 Private Equity Professional | March 28, 2019
Resilience Capital Partners has acquired Systron Donner Inertial, a supplier of quartz microelectromechanical systems (QMEMS) that are used in inertial sensing products in a range of applications from business aircraft to fighter jets to the MARS Rover.
“Systron Donner is an important player in an industry that is critical to America’s future economic prosperity, leadership in aviation and national security,” said Steven Rosen, co-chief executive officer of Resilience Capital Partners. “Technology and innovation leadership is important for our nation’s future, and Systron Donner has been at the forefront of developing high-performing, made-in-America inertial sensors and systems for more than 50 years.”
Resilience Capital Partners invests from $10 million to $40 million in middle market companies with $25 million to $250 million in revenues and EBITDA typically under $20 million. Sectors of interest include industrial manufacturing, distribution, business services, aviation & aerospace, minerals & mining, consumer goods, transportation logistics, building products, metals, and capital equipment. The firm was founded in 2001 and is based in Cleveland (
Inverness Graham has acquired Corsica Technologies, a provider of managed IT services. This is the first acquisition by Inverness Graham as it seeks to build-up a larger managed IT services platform.
“To meet the ever-changing technology needs of our valued customers, we knew we needed to add critical new products and services to Corsica’s core offerings and build out our team to add important key competencies,” said Mr. Walls. “Partnering with Inverness Graham gives us the capital and the strategic and operational resources to support our growth and broaden our service offering that will continue to strengthen our bond with our customer base.”
“Inverness proactively pursued the managed IT services market due to its attractive growth, the highly recurring nature of its revenues and the ability to acquire additional capabilities through synergistic add-on acquisitions,” said Trey Sykes, a managing principal of Inverness Graham. “Corsica is differentiated through its scalable infrastructure, its repeatable model for delivering value to its clients and its best-in-class customer service which made it an ideal target to invest in as the centerpiece of our larger platform-build initiative in the space.”
Inverness Graham manages $500 million in capital and was formed by senior executives of the Graham Group, an industrial and investment concern with interests in plastics, packaging, recycling, building products and outsourced manufacturing. Inverness Graham is based near Philadelphia in Newtown Square, PA (
Blackstone has acquired SERVPRO, a franchisor of residential and commercial property damage restoration services, from the founding Isaacson family who will continue to maintain an equity interest in the company alongside Blackstone.
“We are thrilled about this long-term investment from Blackstone and the strategic benefits its global platform can provide the company, our franchisees, and our customers,” said CEO Rick Isaacson. “SERVPRO was founded over 50 years ago with the vision of becoming the premier cleaning and restoration company, and we believe this partnership with Blackstone is a vital next step towards this goal.”
Blackstone’s investment activities include private equity, real estate, public debt and equity, non-investment grade credit, real assets and secondary funds. The firm also provides financial advisory services, including financial and strategic advisory, restructuring and reorganization advisory, and fund placement services. Blackstone (NYSE: BX) is headquartered in New York (
