Incline Equity-backed Double E Company Announces the Purchase of Appleton Mfg. Division
Incline Equity Partners (“Incline”), a private equity firm focused on making investments in lower middle-market growth companies, announces that its portfolio company, Double E Company (“Double E”), acquired Appleton Mfg. Division (“Appleton”). The close marks Double E’s second acquisition in the last twelve months.
Headquartered in Neenah, Wisconsin, Appleton is a leading provider of core cutters, core handling and finishing equipment, roll and cart movers, and related core processing and handling solutions. Globally, there are more Appleton core cutting machines in use than any other brand. The Appleton acquisition follows Double E’s purchase of Epoch Rollers in November of 2015, building on a strategy to become the single source provider to the web handling market.
“Appleton is a recognized and respected brand in the web handling and converting industries,” said Tom Pranka, CEO at Double E. “Combining the companies made perfect sense, allowing us to leverage the skills and expertise of both organizations to strengthen our overall product and service offerings.”
“The acquisition is a significant event for Double E, nearly doubling the size of the company,” added Leon Rubinov, Partner with Incline. “We are delighted to bring such a well-respected brand of complementary products into the Double E family.”
Incline Equity Portfolio Company AFC Holdings Acquires Eckart & Finard
Incline portfolio company AFC Holdings (“AFC”, or the “Company”) acquired Hartford, Connecticut-based Eckart & Finard (“Eckart”). Established in 1960, Eckart is a full-service stocking distributor of fasteners, Class C parts, and custom engineered components.
“The acquisition supports several of AFC’s strategic initiatives,” said Jack Glover, Partner with Incline. “We needed a physical presence in the Northeast to support our existing customers and better pursue new customer growth, and Eckart’s facility is ideally situated to accomplish those objectives. The acquisition also greatly enhances AFC’s position in the fast-growing and difficult-to-access medical device market.”
The Company adds a 37,000 square foot warehouse facility to AFC’s existing footprint. Eckart provides a broad range of value-added supply chain management services that are tailored to meet its customers’ needs. Its unique and differentiated value-added engineering capabilities supplement AFC’s core fastener distribution and supply chain services.
Kevin Godin, CEO of AFC, added, “Like AFC, Eckart has demonstrated a commitment to providing exceptional customer support. Growth through acquisition is a top priority for us. We operate in a highly fragmented market chock-full of high quality businesses. We will continue to identify and partner with like-minded companies that would expand our geographic reach and/or add related services.”
Staff Updates
Justin Cook
Justin Cook, Associate, joined Incline in July 2016. He is responsible for evaluating, analyzing and monitoring investments made by the firm.
Prior to joining Incline, Justin was an Analyst in the investment banking division of BMO Capital Markets where he focused on M&A advisory, leveraged finance transactions and equity capital raising. Prior to BMO Capital Markets, Justin held roles as a Valuation Analyst and as a Business Risk Consultant with Deloitte.
Justin graduated summa cum laude with honors from the Schreyer Honors College at The Pennsylvania State University with a B.S. in Finance and a concentration in Accounting.
Justin has portfolio coverage responsibilities for Oracle Elevator, Revolution Dancewear and Hartland Controls.
Joe Haddad
Joe Haddad, Associate, joined Incline in September 2016. He is responsible for evaluating, analyzing and monitoring investments made by the firm.
Prior to joining Incline, Joe was a Management Consultant at Deloitte where he focused on M&A advisory services for strategic and private equity clients.
Joe graduated from Williams College with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Economy.
Joe has portfolio coverage responsibilities for Hartland Controls.
Tess Hempel
Tess Hempel, Administrative Assistant, joined Incline Equity Partners in 2016. She is responsible for providing administrative support to Incline’s investment professionals.
Previously, Tess worked in a similar role at Cooper’s R.V. Center.
Recapitalization
In partnership with Twin Brook Capital Partners, Incline recently completed a recapitalization for Burke.
About Incline Equity Partners:
Incline Equity Partners, headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, is a private equity firm focused on making investments in lower middle-market growth companies, focusing on companies with enterprise values of $30MM to $150MM across a variety of industry sectors including value-added distribution, specialized light manufacturing and business services. Typical investment types are management buyouts, ownership transitions for privately held businesses and corporate divestitures. Incline Equity Partners has experience with investing, mergers and acquisitions, leveraged finance, leveraged buyouts and growth capital.
Disclaimer:
Incline Management Corporation (“IMC”) is registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as an investment adviser under the U.S. Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended. Registration as an investment adviser does not imply a certain level of skill or training. IMC provides investment advisory services only to privately offered funds. IMC does not solicit or make its services available to the public or other advisory clients. This press release is intended solely to provide information regarding Incline’s potential capabilities for prospective portfolio companies, and is not an offer to sell to any person, or a solicitation from any person of an offer to buy, any securities. The statements contained herein are not statements of any IMC client fund or investor and do not describe any experience with or endorsement of IMC as an investment adviser by any such client or investor.