Archives for June 29, 2023

GMF Capital (GMF), the family office of Gary Fegel, has acquired Motorsport Network Media, a digital media platform in the motorsport and automotive sectors.

Miami-headquartered Motorsport Network Media (MSNM) operates through 50 motorsport racing and automotive digital properties including Motorsport.com, Autosport, Motorsport-Total.com, GPOne, Motor1.com and InsideEVs.com.

Across all its brands, MSNM has more than 40 million monthly users and an active social media community of more than 15 million followers. According to MSNM, it is the world’s largest independent motorsport racing and automotive media platform.

The transaction also includes the Motorsport Network brand name, as well as Motorsport.tv, a video platform for live and on demand streaming; and the Autosport Awards, a motorsport racing annual awards ceremony.

“Today’s announcement marks the next exciting chapter for Motorsport Network and our leading media business,” said James Allen, the president of the Motorsport Network. “We have had significant acquisition interest in our media assets over the years but found in GMF Capital a buyer that truly values what we have built and shares our vision for the future. The media franchise has continued strong performance, and we believe it will thrive under GMF Capital’s direction.”

Over the past 10 years, GMF has invested more than $5.5 billion primarily in the areas of private equity, real estate, and alternative investments. The acquisition of MSMN is GMF’s first investment in the sports, automotive, and media category.

“We are excited to acquire Motorsport Network Media’s impressive, world-class portfolio of media assets, which are primed for significant growth with the surging popularity of motorsport, particularly Formula 1, in the United States and internationally,” said Gary Fegel, the founder and principal of GMF Capital. “We will leverage the brands’ market-leading position across the motorsport and automotive industries and push the business to the center of fandom. Our acquisition will allow the business to aggressively pursue new growth opportunities, which will benefit employees, advertisers, partners, and tens of millions of users worldwide.”

GMF Capital was founded by Mr. Fegel in 2013 as a single-family office to invest capital on behalf of himself, his family and like-minded investors. Prior to founding the firm, Mr. Fegel was a senior partner at Glencore, a Swiss-based commodity trading and mining company. GMF has offices in New York City and near Zurich in Wollerau, Switzerland.

© 2023 Private Equity Professional | June 30, 2023

Breck Partners has made an investment in Alloy Wheel Repair Specialists, a provider of light vehicle aluminum wheel repair, remanufacturing, and wholesale services.

Alloy Wheel primarily serves dealerships, collision repair shops, insurance companies and vehicle owners. The company operates a fleet of on-site mobile repair units and has a network of wheel remanufacturing shops that allow the company to produce OEM-quality products in thousands of colors and finishes.

Alloy Wheel is headquartered in Norcross, Georgia, and operates through 12 company owned markets and 85 franchise locations across 46 states. Breck partnered on this transaction with CEO Rob Wheeley and other members of the company’s senior management team.

“Rob and the leadership team at Alloy Wheel have done an exceptional job building a team and business that provide a tremendous amount of value to their customers,” said Brian Steinbrueck, a partner at Breck. “We are excited to partner with them to continue building on a service-oriented culture and strong operating foundation to further expand the company’s reach and the impact of its services.”

“The Breck team is the ideal partner for us as we embark on the next phase of our growth,” said Mr. Wheeley. “They immediately recognized the strength of our team and the uniqueness of our capabilities and are fully aligned to support our employees, franchisees, operations, and strategy to continue providing world-class wheel repair and remanufacturing service to our customers. The new partnership with Breck is the culmination of a seven-year journey and we see a very bright future for Alloy Wheel. We look forward to an exceptional relationship with Breck as Alloy Wheel soars to the next level.”

Breck Partners makes control equity investments of $10 million to $50 million in North America-based companies that have revenues from $50 million to $250 million and enterprise values of $25 million to $100 million. Sectors of interest include manufacturing, distribution, and industrial service companies.

Breck has specific interests in “story” transactions, underperforming companies, out-of-favor industries, management transitions, and corporate carve-outs.

“Alloy Wheel is a compelling situation for Breck – a strong, customer-focused, deeply invested team who leads a very well positioned business in attractive markets,” said Brad Brenneman, a partner at Breck. “We are honored to partner with Rob and the Alloy Wheel team and look forward to supporting Alloy Wheel’s growth.”

The Dallas-headquartered firm was founded in March 2018 by Messrs. Brenneman and Steinbrueck who had worked together for more than a decade at Dallas-headquartered Wingate Partners.

© 2023 Private Equity Professional | June 30, 2023