M&A Deal Summary

MPE Partners, Manulife Investment Management and Northwestern Mutual Capital Acquire Waterfront Brands

On July 27, 2021, private equity firm MPE Partners, mezzanine finance firm Manulife Investment Management and corporate investor Northwestern Mutual Capital acquired manufacturer Waterfront Brands from Invision Capital

Acquisition Highlights
  • This is MPE Partners’ 7th, Manulife Investment Management’s 3rd and Northwestern Mutual Capital’s 2nd transaction in the Manufacturing sector.
  • This is MPE Partners’ 72nd, Manulife Investment Management’s 22nd and Northwestern Mutual Capital’s 6th transaction in the United States.
  • This is MPE Partners’ 5th, Manulife Investment Management’s 1st and Northwestern Mutual Capital’s 1st transaction in Minnesota.

M&A Deal Summary
Date 2021-07-27
Target Waterfront Brands
Sector Manufacturing
Buyer(s) MPE Partners
Manulife Investment Management
Northwestern Mutual Capital
Sellers(s) Invision Capital
Deal Type Recapitalization
Advisor(s) Livingstone Partners (Financial)

Target

Waterfront Brands

Fergus Falls, Minnesota, United States
Waterfront Brands is a designer and manufacturer of premium watercraft lifts, docks, and related accessories. Under its three flagship brands, ShoreMaster, HydroHoist, and Neptune, Waterfront offers a complete product line-up to its more than 700 independent dealers and distributors across North America as well as sells direct-to-consumer through both retail locations and its eCommerce websites. Waterfront Brands is based in Fergus Falls, Minnesota.

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Buyer(S) 3

Buyer

MPE Partners

Cleveland, Ohio, United States

Investor Investor Investor Investor Investor

Category Private Equity Firm
Founded 1968
PE ASSETS 3.0B USD
Size Mega
Type Sector Agnostic
DESCRIPTION

MPE Partners is a Midwest based investment firm principally focused private equity investments throughout North America. MPE has a preference for buyouts and recapitalizations of lower middle-market, family and entrepreneur owned businesses. The Firm looks for stand-alone companies operating in the 'high-value' manufacturing or business services sectors. MPE seeks businesses with at least $5 million of EBITDA and valued up to $250 million. MPE Partners is headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio.

DEAL STATS #
Overall 75 of 84
Sector (Manufacturing) 7 of 8
Type (Recapitalization) 19 of 23
State (Minnesota) 5 of 5
Country (United States) 72 of 81
Year (2021) 4 of 5
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2021-07-19 Ideal

St. Augustine, Florida, United States

Ideal is a designer and manufacturer of premium aluminum fences, gates, railings, and other related outdoor products for residential and commercial applications. Ideal offers over 1,500 fences, gates, railings, and other premium outdoor products as well as an infinite number of specialty custom products in varying designs, colors, and sizes. Ideal was founded in 1988 and is based in St. Augustine, Florida.

Buy -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2021-10-15 DecoArt

Stanford, Kentucky, United States

DecoArt is a manufacturer of paints and finishes for arts, crafts, and home decorating applications. DecoArt was founded in 1985 and is based in Stanford, Kentucky.

Buy -
Buyer

Manulife Investment Management

Boston, Massachusetts, United States

Investor Investor Investor Investor Investor

Category Mezzanine Finance Firm
Founded 1998
Size Large
Type Sector Agnostic
DESCRIPTION

Manulife Investment Management is a private investment group that provides mezzanine as well as non-controlling equity capital to middle-market businesses. Manulife Investment's target investment size is $10 to $50 million per transaction. The Group prefers opportunities located in the US. Manulife Investment Management was established in 1998 and maintains offices in Boston and New York City.

DEAL STATS #
Overall 23 of 26
Sector (Manufacturing) 3 of 3
Type (Recapitalization) 4 of 4
State (Minnesota) 1 of 1
Country (United States) 22 of 24
Year (2021) 1 of 1
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2021-05-05 Advicent Solutions

Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States

Advicent Solutions is a provider of SaaS-based technology solutions for the financial advice and planning industry. Advicent Solutions’ products include web-enabled marketing communications, needs assessment, and financial planning tools, and are used by more than 250,000 financial professionals across more than 2,700 customers. Small and medium-sized businesses and some of the world’s largest financial institutions trust Advicent’s products to help grow their business. Advicent Solutions was founded in 1995 and is based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Sell -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2021-12-13 SolAero

Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States

SolAero is a manufacturer of highly efficient, radiation-hard solar cells, Coverglass Interconnected Cells (CICs), and solar panels for space power applications. Since 2001, SolAero products have powered 160 successful space missions with zero on-orbit failures. SolAero Technologies was founded in 1998 and is based in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Sell $80M
Buyer

Northwestern Mutual Capital

Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States

Investor Investor Investor Investor Investor

Category Corporate Investor
PE ASSETS 4.2B USD
Size Mega
Type Sector Agnostic
DESCRIPTION

Northwestern Mutual Capital is a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company, which is also its largest client. Northwestern Mutual Capital manages private assets for its clients across a portfolio of investment grade private placements, mezzanine and equity co-investments in private equity transactions and private equity funds. Northwestern Mutual Capital is based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

DEAL STATS #
Overall 7 of 7
Sector (Manufacturing) 2 of 2
Type (Recapitalization) 2 of 2
State (Minnesota) 1 of 1
Country (United States) 6 of 6
Year (2021) 1 of 1
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2019-08-01 Regenity Biosciences

Paramus, New Jersey, United States

Regenity Biosciences is a developer and manufacturer of collagen-based medical products used for tissue and bone repair and regeneration. Collagen Matrix, Inc. develops proprietary products that are sold to OEM customers on either a contract or private label basis across orthopedic, sports medicine, dental, and neurosurgery end markets. Collagen Matrix, Inc. also offers partnership opportunities including distribution, contract product development, and contract manufacturing services. Regenity Biosciences was founded in 1997 and is based in Paramus, New Jersey.

Buy -

Seller(S) 1

SELLER

Invision Capital

Category Mezzanine Finance Firm
Founded 2009
Size Small
Type Sector Agnostic
DESCRIPTION

Invision Capital is a private investment firm focused on providing a variety of capital solutions to US-based middle-market companies. The Firm looks to invest $2 to $50 million to support a range of transaction situations including buyouts, acquisitions, divestitures, growth needs, and recapitalizations. It prefers profitable companies operating in basic industries such as manufacturing, distribution, and services. Formed in 2009, Invision Capital is based in Chicago and Honolulu.

DEAL STATS #
Overall 3 of 3
Sector (Manufacturing) 1 of 1
Type (Recapitalization) 1 of 1
State (Minnesota) 2 of 2
Country (United States) 3 of 3
Year (2021) 1 of 1
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2020-01-15 Skyline

St. Paul, Minnesota, United States

Skyline is a designer, manufacturer and marketer of trade show displays and exhibits for a wide variety of end-users. Skyline was founded in 1980 and is based in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Sell -
Mergr

Product

Company

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