Wynnchurch Capital has acquired Drew Foam, a maker of expanded polystyrene foam products, from Branford Castle.
Drew Foam’s products are used in industrial, construction, cold chain pharmaceutical and food applications, and consumer markets. The company, led by CEO Bill Givens, was founded in 1965 and is headquartered 80 miles south of Little Rock in Monticello, Arkansas. The company has three additional operating facilities, one each in Georgia, Tennessee, and South Carolina.
“During our partnership with Branford, Drew Foam has achieved the highest record performance in our 50-year history,” said Mr. Givens. “We are looking forward to the company’s next chapter with Wynnchurch Capital and capitalizing on further growth opportunities in the market.”
Branford acquired Drew Foam in June 2018 from Gladstone Investment Corporation. During Branford’s ownership term, the company’s earnings nearly doubled largely through organic sales growth. In November 2019, Drew Foam closed the add-on acquisition of Davis Core & Pad, a Georgia-based manufacturer of expanded polystyrene foam packaging products used in consumer perishables, IT products, and office furniture.
“We are delighted with this highly successful investment for Branford and our limited partners,” said John S. Castle, CEO of Branford.
New York City-based Branford Castle invests in companies that have enterprise values of up to $100 million and EBITDAs of less than $15 million. Sectors of interest include consumer products and services, commercial distribution, industrials and specialty manufacturing, business services, and logistics.
“Our partnership with Bill Givens has been incredible,” said Laurence Lederer, a senior managing director at Branford. “Drew’s unique business model allowed it to achieve significant heights despite challenging economic times. This investment outperformed our optimistic expectations.”
According to Wynnchurch, Drew Foam is positioned to benefit from growing product categories, particularly in geofoam for construction applications and insulated shipping containers for cold chain applications. “Wynnchurch is eager to partner with Drew,” said Frank Hayes, a managing partner at Wynnchurch. “The company fits our investment philosophy of acquiring a differentiated market leader known for its strong customer service with significant organic and inorganic growth potential.”
Wynnchurch makes investments in middle-market companies that have revenues of $50 million to $1 billion. In January 2020, Wynnchurch closed its fifth private equity fund, Wynnchurch Capital Partners V LP, with $2.28 billion of committed capital. The new fund, which began its marketing in September 2019 with a target of $1.6 billion, was oversubscribed and closed at its hard cap. Wynnchurch was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in the Chicago suburb of Rosemont with additional offices in Los Angeles (El Segundo), and Toronto.
Deloitte Corporate Finance was the financial advisor to Drew Foam.
© 2020 Private Equity Professional | November 11, 2020
Gemspring Capital has agreed to sell Therma Holdings to Blackstone Energy Partners.
Gemspring invests in companies that have revenues up to $500 million and are active in the business services, distribution and logistics, financial and insurance services, healthcare services, industrial services, software and tech-enabled services, and specialty manufacturing sectors. The firm, which held a final closing of its debut fund in November 2016 with $350 million of capital commitments, is based in Westport, Connecticut. In March 2020, Gemspring closed its second fund with $750 million of capital commitments.
Blackstone Energy Partners, the buyer of Therma, is Blackstone’s energy-focused private equity business which has invested over $17 billion of equity across a range of sectors within the energy industry. New York City-based Blackstone (NYSE: BX) invests in 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.
Young Innovations, a portfolio company of The Jordan Company, has acquired Preat Corporation, a provider of dental implant components, attachments and tools.
“Our acquisition of Preat reflects our continued commitment to invest in the growing area of implant-related and oral surgery products,” said Dan Garrick, vice president of corporate development at Young Innovations. “Preat’s ‘one-stop-shop’ product line for implant restoration represents an excellent addition to our portfolio as we move toward a full range of products in the oral rehabilitation segment.”
GTCR has closed its thirteenth fund, GTCR Fund XIII LP, with $7.5 billion of limited partner capital commitments.
