H.I.G. Capital announced today that its Brazilian affiliate has completed the acquisition of Cel Lep Idiomas (“Cel Lep”), an English language teaching company.
“We are excited about the H.I.G. acquisition. Their ability and experience in helping companies grow all over the world will help build on my legacy and accelerate the expansion of Cel Lep. I am confident they will maintain the top quality status of Cel Lep, helping an ever growing number of Brazilians in their efforts to speak English,” said Professor Walter Toledo Silva, founder of Cel Lep.
Operating primarily under the Cel Lep brand name, the company provides foreign language education through 17 owned schools in São Paulo and through 4 other licensed schools in the states of São Paulo and Minas Gerais. Cel Lep has taught English to more than 420,000 students. The company was founded in 1967 and is headquartered in São Paulo, Brazil (www.cellep.com).
Fernando Marques Oliveira, Managing Director and Head of H.I.G. Brazil, will be the new Chairman of Cel Lep.
“We are very pleased to acquire such a strong platform as Cel Lep and to help its management team in their growth plan and continued success. Brazil has a pent-up demand for high quality English courses which Cel Lep has always focused on,” said Mr. Oliveira. “We are also excited to expand the company beyond its traditional presence in São Paulo and offer premium English courses to students elsewhere in Brazil. We are bringing additional seasoned talented professionals who are joining the company as part of the transaction, including a CEO and CFO. Together with the company’s great management team, they will be the basis for a more aggressive expansion plan.”
H.I.G. Capital specializes in providing capital to small and medium-sized companies and invests in management-led buyouts and recapitalizations of manufacturing or service businesses. Since its founding, H.I.G. has invested in and managed more than 200 companies and the firm’s current portfolio includes companies with combined revenues in excess of $8 billion. H.I.G. Capital has more than $8.5 billion of equity capital under management and is based in Miami, FL and has other offices in Atlanta, GA; Boston, MA; San Francisco, CA; London, UK; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Hamburg, Germany; and Paris, France (www.higcapital.com).
© 2012 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 9-18-12
