Falfurrias Capital Partners has sold its portfolio company, American Safety Council, to Ridgemont Equity Partners. Falfurrias acquired ASC in May 2014.
American Safety Council (ASC) is a provider of online training, education, and certification services to individuals and businesses – more than two million every year – that are active in the driver and traffic safety, workplace safety, testing, medical continuing education and other regulatory-driven sectors. The company, led by CEO John Comly, was founded in 1998 and is headquartered in Orlando, Florida.
ASC actively collaborates with federal and state agencies, colleges and universities, trade associations and industry to keep the company’s courses compliant with applicable laws, regulations or industry standards.
“We are proud of our successful partnership with American Safety Council, which was defined by significant investments in the team, technology, and content, all of which contributed to strong growth,” said Wilson Sullivan, a principal at Falfurrias. “John and his team have built an online training platform with world-class digital marketing and content development capabilities, as well as a proven track record of successful acquisitions that have created strategic value.”
During Falfurrias’ ownership term of just over six years, ASC completed five add-on acquisitions and expanded the company’s digital marketing and customer acquisition platforms. The five add-on acquisitions were Online Traffic School (December 2014); Huckleberry Notary Bonding (July 2016); National Safety Training/National Hospitality Training (November 2017); Florida Drivers Association (September 2019); and Food Safety Educators (February 2020).
“Falfurrias Capital Partners proved to be the ideal partner for American Safety Council over the past six years, and I’m grateful for the opportunity to work with Wilson and the team to help ASC realize its growth potential,” said Mr. Comly. “We look forward to working with the Ridgemont team as we continue to fulfill that mission.”
“ASC has an outstanding management team, led by John Comly, and a uniquely scaled, national platform with nearly two million customers and over four hundred online courses that help people lead safer and more productive lives,” said Rob Edwards, a partner at Ridgemont. “We have followed the business and its impressive growth trajectory for many years and are very pleased to partner with the ASC team to continue to invest in its content and technology and to actively pursue M&A opportunities in adjacent end markets.”
Charlotte, North Carolina-based Ridgemont focuses on middle-market buyout and growth equity investments of $50 million to $250 million in companies with $5 million to $50 million. The firm invests in the following sectors: business and industrial services, energy, healthcare, and technology and telecommunications. In December 2018, the firm held an oversubscribed final closing of Ridgemont Equity Partners III LP with $1.65 billion in commitments.
“There has been an ongoing paradigm shift of learning environments gravitating from the classroom to a digital setting, and the current public health crisis has accelerated this movement,” said Charles Anderson, a partner at Ridgemont. “Additionally, the U.S. regulatory landscape has become more stringent in many training and continuing education segments. ASC is extremely well-positioned to provide trusted, high-quality content in a user-friendly online format, and Ridgemont is excited to embark on this next chapter of growth alongside the company’s management team.”
Charlotte, North Carolina-based Falfurrias makes equity investments in growth-oriented middle-market companies that have revenues in excess of $10 million and EBITDAs in excess of $2 million. In February 2019, Falfurrias closed its latest fund, Falfurrias Capital Partners IV LP, at its hard cap of $500 million. The firm’s earlier fund closed with $275 million of capital in March 2017. Falfurrias was founded in 2006 by Hugh McColl Jr., former chairman and CEO of Bank of America, and Marc Oken, former CFO of Bank of America.
Financing for this transaction was provided by Benefit Street Partners, AB Private Credit Investors and funds advised by Churchill Asset Management.
Robert W. Baird was the financial advisor to American Safety Council and William Blair served as the financial advisor to Ridgemont.
Private Equity Professional | June 24, 2020
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