Press Release December 4, 2007Fenway Partners’ Refrigerated Holdings Acquires East Coast Warehouse & Distribution
Adds Top Third-Party Provider of Temperature-Controlled Warehousing and Logistics Services to Portfolio
NEW YORK, NY, and ATLANTA, GA, December 4, 2007 – Fenway Partners, a leading middle market private equity firm, and Refrigerated Holdings, Inc., Fenway’s platform for investments in the temperature-controlled logistics sector, today announced that it has acquired a majority interest in East Coast Warehouse & Distribution Corp. and related companies, including Safeway Trucking Corporation, in partnership with the Lebovitz Family. The transaction was completed in August 2007 and financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
East Coast, a leading third party provider of temperature-controlled warehousing and logistics services headquartered in Elizabeth, New Jersey, provides a variety of value-added logistics services for blue-chip customers in the confectionary, cheese, grocery products, alcoholic/non-alcoholic beverages and pharmaceutical industries.
Primary services include Temperature Controlled Public Warehousing, Transportation, Co-Packing, U.S. Customs & Border Protection Examination services, Container Logistics, Temperature Controlled National Pool Consolidation and Contract Warehousing. East Coast, which represents Fenway’s 26th acquisition in the transportation and logistics space, employees approximately 275 people and operates five facilities in New Jersey totaling approximately 1.7 million square feet of space. East Coast also has the largest private flexible panel solar cell project in the United States, powering its facilities with 60 percent renewable resources. East Coast is the largest provider of Temperature Controlled logistics in the Port of NY/NJ, the nation’s third largest port and a critical point for imports and exports into and from North America’s largest consumer market.
As part of the transaction, East Coast will become part of Refrigerated Holdings, joining Gemini Traffic Sales, Fenway’s temperature-controlled LTL and TL carrier which was acquired in February 2007. The addition of East Coast will provide a broader suite of services to Refrigerated Holdings’ customers and is an important step in Fenway’s strategy to create a national, port proximate integrated temperature-controlled transportation and logistics solutions provider.
Robert J. Adams, previously President of Gemini Traffic Sales, Inc., has been named President and Chief Executive Officer of Refrigerated Holdings.
“East Coast is an exciting addition to Fenway’s portfolio of transportation and logistics investments and will nicely complement Refrigerated Holdings’ existing businesses,” said Marc Kramer, Managing Director of Fenway Partners and co-head of the firm’s Transportation/Logistics practice. “This transaction allows us to partner with a founding family and management team with deep roots in the Port of NY/NJ for 50 years, and we look forward to bringing additional resources to further enhance the company’s strong operating platform.”
Marc Lebovitz, President of East Coast, commented, “Over the last 50 years, our family and our employees grew this business to the leadership position it occupies today under the visionary leadership of Roy Lebovitz. We recognize the importance of having a financial partner to assist with future growth. Of the private equity firms we met, we saw a distinct benefit to partnering with Fenway. Fenway’s expertise in the logistics sector and extensive network of transportation industry resources is a clear advantage for both us and them.
My family, our employees and I are all very pleased to partner with Fenway and Refrigerated Holdings.”Daniel K. Sokolowski, Chairman of the Board of Refrigerated Holdings and Operating affiliate of Fenway Partners, stated, “The Fenway team has done extensive research in the segment of temperature controlled logistics and found it to be a very attractive niche to add to our portfolio. We are extremely excited about the opportunities in the sector for future growth and we look forward to working with the strong leadership of both management teams. We are delighted to welcome Rob to our team to head up that charge and believe in his extensive leadership capabilities while working in concert with Fenway will allow us a dominate position in the space.”
Robert Adams, Refrigerated Holdings’ President and Chief Executive Officer, commented, “I am thrilled to be given the opportunity to lead Refrigerated Holdings at such an exciting time in the Company’s continued growth and development. I look forward to working with the Fenway, Gemini and East Coast teams to realize the tremendous potential inherent in both companies.”
Most recently, Adams, 45, was President of Gemini Traffic Sales. Previously, Adams served as President and CEO of General Port Services, Inc. and Chief Operating Officer of the Amports companies.Prior to that, Adams served as the Senior Vice President and Chief Acquisition Officer for United Road Services. Earlier in his career, Adams served as the Manager of Mergers and Acquisitions at Republic Industries and in various management positions with Waste Management in the U.S. and Europe. He began his career as a CPA with Deloitte. Adams received a Bachelors degree in Accounting from Auburn University in 1985, and a Masters in Business Administration from Wake Forest University in 1990.
Ropes & Gray acted as legal counsel to Fenway on the East Coast transaction. Goldman Sachs and Hughes Hubbard & Reed served as East Coast’s financial and legal advisors, respectively.
About Fenway Partners
Fenway Partners, Inc. is a middle market private equity firm with offices in New York and Los Angeles and approximately $2.0 billion under management. Fenway invests in profitable businesses with significant upside potential. Fenway companies typically have leading franchises and operate in two core industry segments, branded consumer products and transportation/logistics. With significant knowledge and success investing in these industries, Fenway has built a strong reputation for its hands-on approach to supporting its portfolio companies which include sporting goods manufacturer Easton Bell Sports, school yearbook and class ring manufacturer American Achievement, transportation and logistics provider Greatwide Logistics, expedited ground transportation provider Panther Expedited Services and intermodal logistics service provider RoadLink.
For further information about Fenway Partners, please visit www.fenwaypartners.com.
Contact:
Brooke Morganstein/Anna Cordasco
Sard Verbinnen & Co
212/687-8080
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