Brightstar Capital Partners has acquired a majority equity interest in Global Resale, a provider of aftermarket services and reverse logistics focused on the resale, buyback, and disposition of technology devices.
The operating strategy of Global Resale is to partner with manufacturers, carriers, resellers, and large corporate accounts to replace their technology equipment – such as laptops, desktops, and monitors – faster and with higher residual values. The acquired technology assets are rebuilt and refurbished and then sold through online retailers, resellers, and other wholesale channels. In December 2015 the company became a member of the Microsoft Authorized Refurbisher Program. Global Resale is led by its CEO Jeff Zeigler and is headquartered in Austin (www.globalresale.com) (www.used-pcs.com).
As part of the transaction, Brightstar has committed $50 million of capital to fund the company’s growth. Global Resale will use the capital to expand its geographic footprint, launch new online marketplaces, and expand its service offerings. The company is currently completing a state-of-the-art services and refurbishment center in a former Dell manufacturing facility in Austin.
“Global Resale is a recognized leader in this space and has an impressive team with a track record of operational excellence. Having known Jeff Zeigler for over a decade, I am confident that he is the right operator to lead this business, and I am excited about the future of this partnership,” said Brightstar Senior Partner Tom Meredith, who will serve as Chairman of Global Resale’s board. Mr. Meredith previously was the CFO of Dell for nearly a decade (1992 to 2001), co-founded Dell Financial Services and Amdahl Capital in addition to having held other senior positions at Motorola and Sun Microsystems.
Messrs. Zeigler and Meredith will be joined on the board of directors by Brightstar Capital Partners’ Managing Partner, Andrew Weinberg, who has experience in the mobile reverse logistics space having served as Chief Operating Officer and Chief Strategy Officer of Brightstar Corporation from 2008 to 2013 (Softbank acquired Brightstar in October 2013). Mr. Weinberg is also a former partner of private equity firm Lindsay Goldberg which he left in May 2015.
Brightstar Capital Partners was founded in July 2015 and invests from $50 million to $300 million in middle-market companies. The firm is based in New York (www.brightstarcapitalpartners.com).
© 2016 Private Equity Professional • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 4-1-16