The Gores Group

The Gores Group

Type	Limited liability company
Industry	Financial services Asset management
Founded	1987
Founder	Alec Gores, chairman & CEO
Headquarters	Los Angeles, California, United States
Products	Private equity
Total assets	$3.7 billion
Website	www.gores.com

The Gores Group is a global private equity firm specializing in acquiring and partnering with mature and growing businesses. The company was founded by its CEO and chairman, Alec E. Gores.

Headquartered in Los Angeles, California, with offices in London and Boulder, Colorado, the firm claimed to have approximately $3.7 billion in assets under management on December 31, 2013,^[1] and is investing from Gores Capital Partners III, L.P. and Gores Small Capitalization Partners, L.P., which have approximately $2.1 billion and $300 million in capital commitments, respectively. Since 1987, Gores has successfully acquired and operated more than 80 companies worldwide.^[1]

The company's current portfolio as of 2015, includes technology, telecommunications, business services, industrial, healthcare, media & entertainment and consumer products companies.^[1]

History

In 1978, Alec Gores founded Executive Business Systems, a hardware and software distributor, which he sold eight years later to establish what has become the Gores Group today.^[2]

Gores closed its first institutional private equity fund, Gores Capital Partners, L.P., in November 2003 with $400 million of committed capital.^[3] The firm's second fund, Gores Capital Partners II, L.P. held a final closing in June 2007 with $1.3 billion of committed capital.^[4]

Timeline

1978

• Alec Gores launches his own computer company, Executive Business System (EBS), with $10,000; eight years later, he sells EBS for approximately $2 million current.^[5]

1987

• The Gores Group is founded by Alec Gores with the single vision to buy, fix and sell businesses.^[6]

1997

• Gores acquires Artemis, a subsidiary of Computer Sciences Corporation (NYSE: CSC).^[7]
• Gores completes its purchase of the Connection Machines business unit from Thinking Machines Corporation.^[8]

1998

• Gores carves out certain assets of the Computer Integrated Manufacturing (CIM) organization of Texas Instruments (NYSE:TXN); the portfolio company is later named Adventa Control Technologies.^[9]

2000

• Gores carves out The Learning Company from Mattel and achieves an operating profit in the first 75 days of ownership.^[10]

2003

• Netherlands-based Anker BV, an independent European supplier of point of sale solutions, is acquired, positioning Gores as an investor in European assets.^[11]
• The firm launches Gores Capital Partners, its first private equity fund; to date, the combined Gores private equity funds have raised over $4 billion in committed capital.^[5]

2004

• Gores opens its London office, after several years of investment activity in the U.K. and Europe.^[5]

2007

• Gores closes on $1.3 billion in capital for its second institutional fund, Gores Capital Partners II, L.P.^[12]

2008

• Gores announces joint venture partnership with Siemens AG for enterprise communication business.^[13]

2010

• Sale of GCP II-owned Vincotech to Mitsubishi Electric demonstrates Gores’ global reach.^[14]

2011

• Gores sells Lineage Power to General Electric in what is the largest sale transaction in Gores’ history.^[15]
• Gores closes on $2.1 billion in capital commitments for its third institutional fund, Gores Capital Partners III, L.P.^[16]
• Gores acquires an 81.25% majority interest in fashion company Mexx for $85 Million

2012

• Gores Small Capitalization Partners, L.P. sells $300 million in commitments, expanding Gores’ resources for small and lower middle market investments.^[17]
• Acquires Harris Broadcast from Harris Corporation in December.^[18]

2013

• Stock Building Supply goes public, marking Gores' first U.S. IPO.^[19]

2014

• Gores announces plans to close 34 subsidiaries of 45 in total located in Germany and being part of Unify. Close downs are expected to be completed by Q2/2015.
• On December 4, 2014, three holding companies of Mexx were declared bankrupt by the district court of Amsterdam. On December 5, 2014, a judge in the Netherlands declared 315 Mexx stores, which serves worldwide including 95 Locations in Canada, bankrupt. The stores are expected to remain open while the chain sells off merchandise.
• In April, Gores acquires a 51% stake in Hovis Bread

Recognition

On December 17, 2013, at the 12th Annual M&A Advisor Awards Gala, The Gores Group was named winner of the “M&A Deal of the Year” (for transactions $500 million to $1 billion in size) for the acquisition of Stock Building Supply. Gores acquired the Company from Wolseley plc in May 2009 and priced a successful IPO in August 2013.^[20]

On September 26, 2013, Cosmo Specialty Fibers was awarded the Chain-of-custody certification by the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification. This certification recognizes Cosmo Specialty Fibers for using wood fiber sourced through sustainable forestry practices.^[21]

On August 29, 2013, in celebration of the recent initial public offering of its stock, Stock Building Supply’s CEO, Jeff Rea, rang the opening bell of the New York Stock Exchange.^[22]

On August 20, 2013, Siemens Enterprise Communications announced that it has been named as a Leader in the 2013 Magic Quadrant for Unified Communications (UC) by Gartner, Inc. Gartner evaluates a company based on its completeness of vision based on current and future market direction, innovation, customer needs, and competitive forces, and how well these map to Gartner’s overall evaluation of the market.^[23]

On July 17, 2013, Entarasys Networks, a Siemens Enterprise Communications Company, was ranked fourth in overall market share among leading Ethernet Edge Switch vendors by the Dell’Oro Group’s 1Q13 Enterprise Edge Report. Dell’Oro group surveyed 30 Wireless LAN and 30 Ethernet Switch equipment vendors for this report.^[24]

On May 27, 2013, Ford Motor Company announced that it is working with Gores’ Portfolio Company, Sage Automotive Interiors, to accelerate the development of recycled fabrics. Sage is Ford’s largest fabric supplier in North America, and provides Ford with fabric made from industrial waste and clear plastic water bottles. The 2013 Ford Fusion is the first vehicle sold around the world to use recycled fabrics.^[25]

On October 1, 2012, The Gores Group received Private Equity International's Award for Operational Excellence in the TMT sector for Lineage Power. PEI’s Operational Excellence Awards recognize and highlight the achievements in the industry.^[26]

On June 19, 2011, The Gores Group won the Global M&A Network's Atlas Award for "turnaround deal of the year", for their acquisition of National Envelope Corporation.^[27]

On December 13, 2011, The Gores Group was named the winner of the Middle-Market Deal of the Year award ($50–100 million) for their acquisition of Cosmo Specialty Fibers at the 10th Annual M&A Advisor Awards. The Gores Group was selected from 389 nominations and over 500 participating companies to receive this award.^[28]

Representative transactions

• January 27, 2014: The Gores Group announced that is has reached a conditional agreement with Premier Foods to operate its Bread business as a stand-alone venture under the name of Hovis Limited in order to increase operational efficiencies and grow the Hovis brand.^[29]
• August 14, 2013: Stock Building Supply Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq:STCK) announced that it has closed its previously announced underwritten initial public offering of 7,000,000 shares of common stock at the price to the public of $14.00 per share. The underwriters exercised in their full option to purchase an additional 1,050,000 shares of common stock from certain selling stockholders, resulting in a total initial public offering size of 8,050,000 shares.^[30]
• July 30, 2013: Gores’ portfolio company, The Hay Group, announced that it had entered into an agreement to acquire Metallumform, an integrated manufacturer of forged machined automotive components with two plants in Germany. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.^[31]
• January 2, 2013: The Gores Group announced that it had completed the acquisition of Therakos, Inc. from Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics, Inc.^[32]
• December 14, 2012: Charles Bank Capital Partners announced that it acquired United Road Services from The Gores Group for an undisclosed amount. Kathleen McCann, president and CEO, will continue to lead the company.^[33]
• October 15, 2012: The Gores Group announced that it extended a binding offer to acquire Therakos, Inc. from Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics, Inc. Therakos is company developing products for extracorporeal photopheresis (ECP) immune modulation therapy. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.^[34]
• August 17, 2011: The Carlyle Group announced that it had completed the acquisition of French-based Sagemcom, a global high-technology group specializing in broadband communications and energy activities, from The Gores Group. Carlyle said in a statement it now owned 70 percent of Sagemcom, while the company's management and employees had the remaining 30 percent. Sagemcom has more than 6,000 employees globally and posted sales of 1.4 billion euros in 2010.^[35]
• May 9, 2011: The Gores Group announced that it partnered with management to acquire Sage Automotive Interiors, Inc., a supplier of specialty fabric materials for the automotive industry, a portfolio company of Azalea Capital, LLC.^[36]
• January 13, 2011: General Electric Co. agreed to buy Lineage Power Holdings Inc. for $520 million from The Gores Group. Lineage supplies equipment that converts power to direct current from alternating current as well as power-module and data-center systems in the $20 billion micro power source industry.^[37]

Portfolio

• Alpheus
• Astadia
• Big Strike
• Compudyne
• Cosmo Specialty Fibers, Inc
• DMN
• Elo Touch Solutions
• Etrali
• Fotona
• GatesAir
• Glotel
• Hay
• Imagine Communications
• J. Mendel
• Melle Dachbaustoffe GmbH
• Meridian
• Mexx
• Millennium1 Solutions
• Norment Security Group, Inc
• Real Software (Belgium)
• Sage Automotive Interiors
• Scovill
• Stock Building Supply
• The Clark Group, Inc.
• Therakos, Inc.
• Tiburon
• Unify (formerly Siemens Enterprise Communication)
• Zmags

References

1. "Overview". The Gores Group. Retrieved April 9, 2013.
2. "Fixer-upper pro loves a challenge". Docstoc.com.
3. "Manta - Rediscover America's Small Business". Manta.
4. "Alec Gores: '100% devoted' to private equity", Fortune, February 16, 2011
5. Company website: www.gores.com "The Gores Group"
6. "Company Overview of the Gores Group LLC", Bloomberg Business Week
7. "Gores Technology Group Acquires CSC Artemis", AECNews (archived), March 1, 1997
8. "Gores Technology Group Acquires Connection Machines Services Business Unit", The Gores Group, April 16, 1997
9. "Gores Acquires TI CIM Unit", Software Intensive Systems Engineering, June 15, 1998
10. "Learning Co. Profits From Expense Cuts", SF Gate, March 6, 2001
11. "Gores Technology Group Announces the Acquisition of Anker B.V.", PR Newswire, February 27, 2003
12. "Gores Fund is looking to close Smaller Deals", Los Angeles Times, June 28, 2007
13. "The Gores Group and Siemens AG Complete Transaction", Bloomberg, October 1, 2008
14. "Gores Group Completes Sale of Vinotech", PE Hub, January 5, 2011
15. "GE Energy to Acquire Gores Group's Lineage Power Holdings", Bloomberg, January 13, 2011
16. "The Gores Group closes $2 billion private equity fund", CPI Financial
17. "The Gores Group Debuts New Fund".
18. Harris Corporation. "Harris Corporation to Sell Broadcast Communications to The Gores Group for $225 Million".
19. "Stock Building Supply files to go public". Triangle Business Journal. 18 June 2013.
20. M&A Advisor press release
21. "Cosmo Specialty Fibers Awarded PEFC Chain-of-Custody Certification - Newstalk KBKW".
22. "NASDAQ MarketSite Event".
23. "Siemens Enterprise Communications Positioned as a Leader in 2013 Magic Quadrant for Unified Communications". MarketWatch.
24. "Latest News Headlines - NASDAQ.com". NASDAQ.com.
25. Joann Muller (27 May 2013). "Ford's Global Ambitions Include Turning The World's Plastic Bottles Into Car Parts". Forbes.
26. "PEI Operational Excellence Awards 2012", Private Equity International, October 8, 2012
27. "National Envelope wins Private Equity Turnaround Deal of the Year Award", Turnaround Atlas Awards, June 19, 2011
28. "Winners Announced for the 10th Annual M&A Awards", The M&A Advisor', December 16, 2011
29. "Premier Foods in Hovis partnership with US Gores Group". FoodManufacture.co.uk.
30. "Stock Building Supply Announces Closing of IPO - DWM/Shelter Magazine".
31. "The Hay Group Announces the Acquisition of Metallumform".
32. "The Gores Group Completes the Acquisition of Therakos, Inc. from Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics, Inc. - Business Wire".
33. http://www.charlesbank.com/news/2012/12_14_12.xml
34. "The Gores Group Extends Binding Offer to Acquire Therakos, Inc. from Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics, Inc. - Business Wire".
35. "Carlyle says finalises buy of France's Sagemcom from The Gores Group", Reuters, August 20, 2011
36. "The Gores Group Acquires Sage Automotive Interiors", Yahoo Finance, May 9, 2011
37. "GE Energy to Acquire Gores Group's Lineage Power Holdings for $520 Million", Bloomberg, January 13, 2011

External links

• Official website