Huron Capital’s non-control equity group, Huron Flex Equity, has made an investment in Stay Online, a maker of power cords and cables used in data center, power infrastructure, and industrial applications.
According to Huron Capital, Stay Online has one of the largest in-stock inventories of its kind in the world, and exports to more than 100 countries annually. The company was founded in 1987 by Jim and Bellinda Higgins and has a 152,000 sq. ft. manufacturing and warehouse facility located north of Raleigh in Creedmoor, NC (www.stayonline.com).
Mr. Higgins will continue in his role as CEO after the investment. “I am delighted to be partnering with Huron Capital,” said Mr. Higgins. “We are proud of the strong company we have built, so it’s important that we partner with an investor who understands our team and can serve as an asset as we work together to further grow the business.”
“Stay Online is an exciting and promising investment for us,” said Doug Sutton, Partner and Head of Huron Flex Equity. “The company has a solid base of blue-chip clients in a variety of end-markets and we plan to work actively with Jim and the company to pursue both organic and acquisition growth opportunities.”
Huron Capital launched Huron Flex Equity in April 2016. The strategy is led by Mr. Sutton and Charles Sheridan who joined Huron Capital in January 2016 after 13 years at BMO Private Equity. At BMO, the pair led a similar investment approach focused on the lower middle-market.
Huron Capital invests up to $70 million per transaction in middle market companies that have revenues up to $200 million and EBITDAs of $5 million or more. Sectors of interest include specialty manufacturing, business services, consumer goods & services, and healthcare. Huron was founded in 1999 and has offices in Detroit and Toronto (www.huroncapital.com).
In January 2017, Huron closed the firm’s fifth fund, The Huron Fund V, LP, with $550 million of capital commitments. The new fund closed at its hard cap and in excess of its $500 million target. The final close was reached after just three months of marketing and was oversubscribed with over $1 billion of demand.
© 2017 Private Equity Professional | August 3, 2017
