Strong Organic and Acquisition Growth Results in 7x Return on Investment
NEW YORK, Aug. 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Charterhouse Group, Inc.
("Charterhouse") today announced that it has entered into a definitive
agreement to sell its interest in Oakleaf Global Holdings, Inc. ("Oakleaf"
or the "Company"), a leading provider of outsourced waste logistics
solutions, to New Mountain Partners II, L.P. and New Mountain Partners III,
L.P., private equity funds sponsored by New Mountain Capital LLC ("New
Mountain"), in a transaction valued at $655 million.
Under Charterhouse's four year partnership with Oakleaf CEO and Founder
Jim Barnes and his management team, the Company has grown significantly to
become North America's leading asset-light provider of outsourced waste
logistics solutions. The Company successfully completed six add-on
acquisitions between 2004 and 2007, broadly expanding the Company's service
offering and diversifying its customer base.
Oakleaf manages national waste service contracts for a diverse group of
corporations in the retail, restaurant, hospitality, manufacturing and
property management industries. The Company utilizes a network of local and
regional waste haulers to provide non-hazardous waste collection services
for its customers. Oakleaf is differentiated from others in the waste
industry by its asset-light business model, which reduces customer costs,
improves vendors' route density and encourages environmentally "green"
alternatives to traditional waste disposal. At the Company's core is one of
the most advanced customer and vendor management information technology
platforms in the business process outsourcing industry. The Company's
entrepreneurial management and state-of-the-art systems have revolutionized
the waste services industry by providing comprehensive, nationwide
solutions to corporations. Today, Oakleaf serves approximately 500 major
customers at 85,000 locations in North America and executes over two
million transactions per month.
Jay Gates, Partner at Charterhouse, said, "Ever since we established a
relationship with Oakleaf CEO and Founder Jim Barnes through Charterhouse
Entrepreneur Paul Verrochi, we were impressed with the vision and
creativity of Jim and his team. We are proud to have supported the Company
through such an exciting period of growth that has helped change and
revitalize the industry. Oakleaf exemplifies our partnership with industry
leaders in emerging business service sub-sectors. The Company is
well-positioned for future expansion and Charterhouse wishes management
continued success as they work with New Mountain to take the business to
the next level."
The sale of Oakleaf reflects the culmination of a well-executed
Charterhouse Entrepreneur-focused build-up strategy. The Oakleaf strategy
is consistent with Charterhouse's focus on sourcing proprietary deals and
investment opportunities through its Entrepreneur relationships and
creating value through well-developed buy-and-build strategies. It is also
representative of Charterhouse's core thesis of targeting investments in
differentiated, asset-light and scaleable sectors that are
uniquely-positioned for extraordinary growth. Since 1973, Charterhouse has
consistently identified and partnered with seasoned executives and
supported the growth of market leading companies.
Paul Verrochi, Charterhouse Entrepreneur and Oakleaf's Chairman,
stated, "It has been my pleasure to work closely with Jim and the Oakleaf
team. The executives who work for Jim comprise one of the finest groups of
managers that I have had the pleasure of dealing with during my 35 years in
the service sector. They have built a solid and sustainable culture -
second to none. I am proud to have overseen the six-fold revenue growth of
this outstanding and dynamic company." Previous to his Charterhouse
affiliation, Mr. Verrochi was a founder of several businesses including
American Medical Response, Inc., a provider of ambulance services, and
Coach USA, Inc., a provider of motorcoach charters, tour and sightseeing
services.
Jim Barnes stated: "Paul, Jay and the rest of the Charterhouse
professionals have been great partners over the last four years. With their
industry connections and deep transaction experience, they brought more
than just capital to the table. Charterhouse was incredibly resourceful and
the insight and constructive support that we received enabled us to realize
our vision of building an industry leader in a relatively short period of
time."
The transaction is expected to close in mid-August. The Company was
advised by Robert W. Baird & Co. Incorporated and Proskauer Rose LLP.
About Charterhouse Group:
Charterhouse Group, Inc. is a private equity firm that has been active
for over three decades in building leading middle-market companies.
Established in 1973, Charterhouse has invested over $2 billion in equity
through several limited partnerships. Since its inception, Charterhouse has
completed investments in over 100 platform companies with a focus in the
Business Services, Healthcare Services and Consumer Products and Services
sectors. For more information on Charterhouse, please visit
http://www.charterhousegroup.com.
About Oakleaf Global Holdings, Inc.:
Oakleaf, founded in 1995, provides logistics services related to waste
and recycling solutions to a broad base of multi-location retail,
restaurant, hotel, manufacturing, property management and mall clients
including Sears, United Technologies, Kmart, GAP, TGI Fridays and more.
Oakleaf is the most rapidly growing waste outsourcing company in the nation
with more than 450 employees, a nationwide network of 4,600 certified
haulers and more than 85,000 locations served throughout North America.
Oakleaf was named to Inc. Magazine's 500 List three years in a row and has
been ranked on Inc.'s Inner City 100 List for the last three years. For
more information on Oakleaf, please visit http://www.oakleafwaste.com.
SOURCE Charterhouse Group, Inc.
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Related links:
http://www.charterhousegroup.com
http://www.oakleafwaste.com
CONTACT:
Jay Gates, Partner, +1-212-584-3223, or David
G. Hoffman, Partner, +1-212-584-3234, both of Charterhouse Group,
Inc.; or Daniel Jacobs of Broadgate Consultants, +1-212-232-2227,
djacobs@broadgate.com
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