Finding the Right Partner to Grow the Business…Private Company Growth Strategy

Goals of Ownership

Find partner to provide capital to facilitate growth and fund prospective acquisition opportunities
Maintain meaningful ownership stake in business
Diversify net worth – vast majority of net worth tied up in company
Reduce personal risk through elimination of personal bank guarantees
Create opportunity for senior (non-owner) employees to obtain ownership stake

The De NES Partners principal who led the transaction approached 50 Private Equity Firms
40 Firms reviewed book; 18 made preliminary offers; 4 Firms selected to meet with ownership, all of which made final offers
Completed deal with Private Equity Firm with over $700 million in capital under management – assured ample capital to geographically expand the business
Post-transaction, owner retained a meaningful ownership stake
Owner removed from all personal guarantees from bank and credit lines
Private Equity Firm created a stock option pool equivalent to 15% of the common shares for senior employees (including stock options available to recruit new executives)

Company has completed its first five add-on acquisitions, with several more contemplated
Management team strengthened through addition of CFO, head of HR/Recruiting and several other senior industry executives to open new geographic regions/business lines
Revenue has more than doubled in three years and Owner (and the Private Equity Firm) believes that his business will be able to grow by an additional 2x to 3x over the next five years.

* This transaction was completed by a De NES Partners Principal while at a predecessor firm