Archives for March 14, 2023

Salt Creek Gets a Grip, Acquires Versa

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Salt Creek Capital has acquired Power Gripps USA (DBA Versa Gripps USA), a branded manufacturer of weightlifting accessories.

Versa Grips are used by professional athletes, bodybuilders, and weightlifters to improve grip strength and assist with lifting heavier weights. By providing a more secure grip on the weight, Versa Grips allow the user to lift more weight with more reps which can lead to greater muscle gains and improved strength over time.

Source: Versa Gripps

Versa Grips are made at the company’s facility in Maine and come in a range of sizes and styles to fit different hand sizes and training goals. Some models feature extra padding or wrist support for added comfort and protection during heavy lifts. Versa Grips was founded in 1998 by Michael and Heather Parker and is headquartered in Sorrento, Maine.

Post-closing, Versa Gripps will be led by incoming CEO Lester Lee. “Versa Gripps USA has an exciting future ahead of it and I look forward to working with the loyal employees, suppliers, and customers of the company to build upon the great legacy created by Mike and Heather Parker,” said Mr. Lee. Other members of the company’s management team include COO Katelyn Bray and CMO Willa Parker.

“Versa Gripps USA is an established leader with a history of innovation. We look forward to working alongside Lester, Katelyn, Willa, and the entire team to continue to expand with this great platform,” said Jordan Stankowski, an operating partner at Salt Creek Capital.

“It has been an amazing journey over the last two decades building Versa Gripps into the company it is today,” said the Parkers in a released statement. “We look forward to seeing Lester Lee and the Salt Creek Capital team lead the company through its next stage of growth.”

Salt Creek invests in North American-headquartered companies that have revenues of $5 million to $150 million. Sectors of interest include manufacturing, logistics, value-added distribution, B2B and B2C services, food and beverage, healthcare, retail, and hospitality. The firm is headquartered near Menlo Park in Woodside, California.

© 2023 Private Equity Professional | March 14, 2023

CI Capital Sells PRA to EagleTree

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CI Capital Partners has sold PRA, a business event management company, to EagleTree Capital.

Chicago-headquartered PRA provides end-to-end event planning, creative, and production services to in-person, digital, and hybrid corporate meetings and events, incentive travel programs, conventions, and conferences. Customers of PRA include corporate clients, and many Fortune 100 companies, across a variety of industries.

Source: PRA

CI Capital acquired PRA – then AlliedPRA, the company rebranded in October 2018 – from UK private equity firm Core Capital Partners in August 2017. During CI Capital’s ownership term, PRA completed nine add-on acquisitions and, in tandem with organic growth, achieved a nearly three-fold growth in both revenue and EBITDA.

Four of the add-on acquisitions included New York-based Briggs (2017), Tennessee-based Destination Nashville (2018), Illinois-based One Smooth Stone (2018), and Florida-based Koncept Events (2019).

The company’s add-on acquisition program expanded the business into several important US markets, built its digital event capabilities and advanced its technology capabilities. According to PRA, its add-on acquisition program directly enabled the company to navigate the COVID-19 pandemic.

“CI Capital is proud to have collaborated with PRA for more than five transformative years, driving growth and resilience through the COVID-19 pandemic to achieve the best year in PRA’s history in 2022,” said Fred Iseman, the CEO of CI Capital. “We wish the PRA management team all the best as the company enters this exciting new phase of its evolution.”

Source: PRA

“With CI Capital’s partnership, we significantly scaled our operations to deliver broader reach for our clients and expanded our digital offerings to emerge from the pandemic as a more formidable enterprise,” said Mike Fiber, the CEO of PRA. “We look forward to building on this momentum to deliver even more value for our clients as a go-to partner for cutting-edge experiences.”

“PRA has built a strong reputation by creating unique and highly-engaging programs for its diverse customer base and is well positioned to continue leading the business events sector,” said Mike Struble, a senior partner of EagleTree. “We look forward to working with Mike Fiber, the senior leadership, and the talented team at PRA, to support the company’s continued growth and help shape the future of this industry.”

New York City-headquartered EagleTree, formerly Wasserstein Partners, invests in the media and communications, consumer products, and water and industrial sectors. The firm’s acquisition of PRA was made through EagleTree Partners V LP.

“PRA represents a great opportunity for EagleTree to leverage its experience investing in travel, trade shows and conferences, and event services. We are excited to partner with the entire team at PRA,” said Anup Bagaria, a co-managing partner of EagleTree.

New York City-headquartered CI Capital Partners invests from $10 million to $150 million in middle-market companies operating in the outsourced business services, residential services, distribution and logistics, government services, and healthcare services sectors. Since its founding in 1993, CI Capital and its portfolio companies have made over 425 platform company and add-on acquisitions totaling more than $10 billion in enterprise value.

New York City-based BrightTower was the financial advisor to PRA on this transaction.

© 2023 Private Equity Professional | March 14, 2023

OceanSound Continues Test and Inspection Build

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RMA Companies, a platform company of OceanSound Partners, has acquired PRI Group.

PRI’s independent third-party testing, evaluation, and technical services are provided to several infrastructure end-markets, including asphalt/bitumen, transportation, building materials, chemical, and energy.

The company operates through three business units including (1) Asphalt Technologies which provides testing, evaluation, and technical services to the asphalt industry from asphalt derivation through its lifecycle of use in paving, roofing, and industrial products; (2) Construction Materials which provides testing, inspection, and product certification services for building materials, including roof coverings, claddings, glass, adhesives, paints and coatings; and (3) Building Envelope which assists clients with building code compliance.

PRI was founded in 1990 by Ken Grzybowski and today is led by President Brad Grzybowski. The company operates two laboratory facilities in Tampa, Florida (headquarters) and Munster, Indiana.

RMA Companies is a  national provider of testing, inspection, certification, and compliance (TICC) services to the transportation, healthcare, power, and water end markets. Specific areas of expertise include environmental consulting, geotechnical engineering, geophysics and subsurface imaging, and pavement engineering. RMA, founded in 1962, has approximately 600 employees – engineers, geologists, inspectors, and technicians – and is headquartered in Rancho Cucamonga, California.

Source: RMA Companies

OceanSound has been active with RMA since acquiring the company in September 2021 and has now completed six add-on acquisitions to execute on its strategy to build a national testing and inspection services company.

The five earlier add-on acquisitions are Arizona-based Western Technologies (January 2022), California-based CSI Services (February 2022), California-based C Below (January 2023), Oregon-based Northwest Geotech (December 2022), and Washington-based GeoTest Services (February 2023).

“The addition of PRI supports our strategic expansion into the Southeast and bolsters our TICC portfolio,” said Ed Lyon, the CEO of RMA. “PRI is one of the preeminent providers of asphalt and construction materials testing and certification services. They have advanced lab capabilities in the development and evaluation of asphalt products. In addition, their materials testing expertise adds to our range of building envelope services, enabling RMA to provide comprehensive services across both product and project lifecycles. We look forward to providing these services and driving cross-sell opportunities across the RMA companies.”

New York City-based OceanSound makes control investments of $75 million to $300 million in North America-based technology and technology-enabled services companies serving the government and enterprise industries. Typical target companies will have enterprise values of $150 million to $750 million. The firm is led by Managing Partner and Co-Founder Joe Benavides alongside fellow Partners and Co-Founders Ted Coons and Jeff Kelly.

In February 2022, OceanSound closed its debut fund, OceanSound Partners Fund LP, with an above-target $780 million of committed capital.

© 2023 Private Equity Professional | March 14, 2023

Aurora Capital Promotes Yung

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Aurora Capital Partners has promoted Bryant Yung to principal.

Prior to joining Aurora in 2019, Mr. Yung worked at Empyrean Capital Partners and Oak Hill Capital Partners.

“Bryant has become a highly valued and trusted teammate both internally at Aurora and at our portfolio companies,” said Matt Laycock, a partner at Aurora. “He has been an integral member of the Aurora investment team and we look forward to his continued contributions as we collectively execute Aurora’s strategy and operations program to drive value across our portfolio.”

While at Aurora, Mr. Yung has been active with several of the firm’s portfolio companies and serves on the board of directors of SRP Companies, Spray-Tek and Universal Pure. Mr. Yung began his career in investment banking at UBS and he has his undergraduate degree from Cornell and his MBA from Harvard.

Over the past year, Aurora has closed several platform investments including the November 2022 acquisition of Universal Pure, a Nebraska-based provider of high-pressure processing, food safety, and supply chain services to the food industry. High-pressure processing utilizes water and pressure to inactivate food-borne pathogens without the use of chemicals or other additives. Earlier, in August 2022, the firm acquired Sharps Compliance, a Texas-based provider of waste management services including medical, pharmaceutical, and hazardous waste through both mail-back and route-based collection services.

In working with its portfolio companies during the same timeframe, Aurora completed 27 add-on acquisitions and closed three exits including (1) Pace, a Minneapolis-based provider of testing and analytical lab services to the environmental and life sciences sectors, to Leonard Green in January 2022; (2) VLS Environmental Solutions, a Texas-based provider of railcar and barge cleaning, and waste management services, to I Squared in August 2022; and (3) National Technical Solutions, a California-based provider of testing, inspection, and certification services to the civil aviation, space, defense, nuclear, medical, and automotive sectors, to Element Materials Technology Group in September 2022.

Aurora Capital makes control investments of $50 million to $300 million in industrial, manufacturing, and service-oriented businesses that are valued between $100 million and $500 million. Specific sectors of interest include industrial services and distribution, engineered products, and technology-enabled services. Aurora Capital was founded in 1991 and is headquartered in Los Angeles.

© 2023 Private Equity Professional | March 14, 2023