Acquisitions in South Carolina in 2020

Doxim, a customer communications management (CCM) and engagement technology provider, has acquired Laser Print Plus, a specialist in regulated customer communications and print/mail services. The deal expands Doxim's regulated CCM capabilities and provides Laser Print Plus customers access to Doxim's omnichannel software and managed services.

Wynnchurch Capital has acquired Huntington Foam, a manufacturer of engineered EPS, EPP and ARCEL foam products headquartered in Greer, South Carolina. Huntington will be combined with Wynnchurch portfolio company Drew Foam Companies to create a unified foam-platform serving appliance, cold-chain, automotive and building products end markets.

Novatech, a nationwide Managed Office provider and a portfolio company of Trivest Partners, has acquired United Laser, a Florence, South Carolina–based managed print services provider. United Laser will operate as a division within Novatech, maintaining its headquarters and management team while expanding Novatech's managed print capabilities nationwide as an add-on to its portfolio.

World Insurance Associates LLC (WIA), a Top 100 insurance brokerage headquartered in Tinton Falls, New Jersey, acquired Strovis Holdings, LLC and its subsidiaries Strovis Insurance, Strovis Payroll & HR, and Strovis Benefits of Georgetown, South Carolina (effective November 1, 2020). The acquisition expands World’s property & casualty and employee benefits capabilities in South Carolina while adding payroll and HR technology and services to its offering; terms were not disclosed.

NW Synergy (NWS), the holding company led by FEMSA and comprised of North American, WAXIE and SWPlus, has acquired Southeastern Paper Group (SEPG). The acquisition adds SEPG's seven warehouse facilities and nearly 500 employees, expanding NWS's geographic reach into the southeastern United States and strengthening its janitorial, foodservice disposables and industrial packaging distribution capabilities.

Wynnchurch Capital acquired Huntington Solutions (also referred to as Huntington Foam), a custom-engineered foam and shape-molded packaging provider headquartered in Greer, South Carolina, from Mill Point Capital. The deal (terms not disclosed) is part of Wynnchurch’s consolidation of foam/packaging assets (including Drew Foam) to build a larger foam-packaging platform and expand capabilities in cold-chain and protective packaging.

Publicus Community has acquired Real Living Productions, the in-house creative and marketing operations agency that worked with IMI Worldwide Properties. The acquisition expands Publicus's capabilities in resort, real estate and hospitality marketing and combines operations in Raleigh, North Carolina and Greenville, South Carolina under a refreshed Real Living Productions brand.

VLS Recovery, a portfolio company of Aurora Capital Partners, has acquired Spartanburg-based JBR Environmental Services. The add-on expands VLS's waste management and industrial cleaning capabilities in the Southeastern United States and the JBR facility will operate within VLS's Waste division with Rex Russell continuing to run the business.

Arizona-based Royal Paper, backed by private equity firm Gridiron Capital, has acquired Sun Paper Company, a Duncan, South Carolina-based manufacturer of bath, towel, napkin and facial tissue. The acquisition expands Royal Paper's national footprint and manufacturing capacity, creating a larger private-label and sustainable tissue platform serving retail and away-from-home customers.

The Hilb Group, LLC (THG), a Carlyle-backed insurance brokerage, acquired Plan Benefit Services, Inc. (PBSI), an employee benefits consulting and brokerage firm based in West Columbia, South Carolina, with the transaction effective December 1, 2020. Branford Armstrong and PBSI associates joined THG’s Southeast operations and will continue to operate from their West Columbia location as part of THG’s national brokerage platform.

Nashville-based Urgent Care Group has acquired Access Medical, a single-location urgent care center in North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. The clinic — Access Medical's 22nd center to join the Urgent Care Group network — will be rebranded as MEDcare Urgent Care and expand hours and online patient services under the MEDcare brand.

First American Financial Corporation has completed the acquisition of ServiceMac, LLC, a mortgage subservicing firm. The deal makes ServiceMac a wholly‑owned subsidiary of First American to expand its mortgage servicing capabilities and accelerate product innovation across the mortgage life cycle.

Atkore International Group Inc. acquired the assets of Queen City Plastics, Inc., a Fort Mill, South Carolina-based manufacturer of PVC conduit, elbows and fittings for the electrical market. The acquisition expands Atkore's product portfolio and strengthens its ability to serve customers in the Southeast and mid-Atlantic U.S.; terms were not disclosed.

RLDatix, a PE-backed provider of patient safety and GRC software, has acquired Verge Health, a credentialing and provider-management software vendor. The deal brings Verge's Converge platform and analytics capabilities (serving ~900 healthcare organizations and ~500,000 users) into RLDatix to create an integrated safety-led compliance and credentialing software platform for healthcare.

Trean Insurance Group, through its wholly-owned subsidiary Benchmark Holding Company, has completed the acquisition of 7710 Insurance Company and its associated program manager and agency. The deal expands Trean’s specialty insurance footprint by adding a leader in workers’ compensation coverage for the emergency services (fire and EMS) market.

Forum Health, a nationwide provider of functional and integrative medicine based in Flint, Michigan, has acquired Wellness by Design, a holistic medical clinic in Greenville, South Carolina led by Dr. Connie Casebolt. The acquisition brings Wellness by Design into the Forum Health network to expand patient access to personalized, root-cause-focused care.

World Insurance Associates LLC (WIA), a national insurance brokerage headquartered in Tinton Falls, New Jersey, acquired The Walker Agency, Inc. (d/b/a Palmetto Insurance) of Anderson, South Carolina, effective October 1, 2020. The acquisition expands WIA's presence in the Southeast and adds a property & casualty-focused agency specializing in auto, home, homebuilders, umbrella, and life insurance to WIA's platform; terms were not disclosed.

NearU HVAC Services acquired Hagan Heating and Air, a 33-year-old Anderson, South Carolina-based residential and light commercial HVAC contractor. Hagan will join NearU's existing Carolina Heating Services operations in Upstate South Carolina, with founder Paul Hagan remaining on the team to lead customer service.

Titan Home Improvement, a Fort Lauderdale-based platform owned by affiliates of York Capital Management, acquired Paradise Home Improvement, a South Carolina-based provider of replacement windows and doors, roofing, bathrooms and other home improvement services. The deal is an add-on to Titan's platform (its fourth acquisition since 2019) and expands Titan's footprint across North Carolina and South Carolina markets as it builds a national network of home improvement contractors.

Capital Waste Services, a Kinderhook Industries portfolio company, acquired Superior Sanitation, a residential collection business in Kershaw County, South Carolina, adding approximately 1,700 subscription customers. The transaction — Capital Waste's third add-on to expand its regional residential collection footprint — was financed by Comerica Bank and involved the sale by long-time owner Denise Dunlap.

GEF Capital Partners acquired a controlling interest in EnviroMix, a Charleston-based provider of water and wastewater mixing and process control technologies. EnviroMix's management retained a significant equity stake and will partner with GEF to accelerate product development and expand into new municipal and industrial markets.

Gen Cap America, a Nashville-based private equity firm, has acquired Eastern Business Forms (EBF), a Greenville, South Carolina manufacturer of 903 filter paper used in newborn screening diagnostics. The deal was completed in partnership with EBF management as a platform acquisition; terms were not disclosed.

SCA Sweeping Corporation of America (a Soundcore Capital Partners portfolio company) acquired Moncks Corner-based Sweeping South, Inc. and Columbia-based Accusweep Services, Inc., expanding SCA's presence in South Carolina. The deals increase SCA's footprint in the Columbia and Charleston markets and bring the platform's employee headcount to over 1,000 across its locations.

Relation Insurance Services, a PE-backed independent insurance brokerage, has acquired the assets of Theodore & Associates Insurance Agency, a Columbia, South Carolina-based insurance brokerage. Theodore will retain its name and leadership (Drew Theodore and Nick Theodore) and operate as a Relation company, expanding Relation's geographic footprint into South Carolina and broadening product and risk-management capabilities for clients.

Capital Waste Services, a portfolio company of Kinderhook Industries, acquired Priority-1 (reported as Priority-1 Residential and Priority-1 Waste) to launch and expand its Charleston-area operations and add both residential curbside and roll-off construction/industrial capabilities. The add-on(s) were financed by Comerica Bank with Kirkland & Ellis advising Kinderhook.

World Insurance Associates LLC (WIA), a national insurance brokerage, acquired Professional Insurance Consulting, Inc. (PICI) of Fort Mill, South Carolina, effective July 1, 2020. The acquisition expands WIA's presence in South Carolina and adds a commercial-lines agency specializing in pizza shops, non-profit organizations, and the automatic sprinkler industry. Terms were not disclosed.

HCI Equity Partners acquired Tech24, a national provider of installation, preventative maintenance and emergency repair services for foodservice and HVAC equipment, in June 2020. HCI plans to use Tech24 as a platform to pursue add-on acquisitions to build scale, geographic density and expanded service capabilities across the U.S.

Ingevity Corporation acquired the assets of Adsorbed Natural Gas Products, Inc. (ANGP) of Johns Island, South Carolina. The asset purchase brings ANGP's adsorbed natural gas (ANG) bi-fuel vehicle technology and team (including CEO Bob Bonelli) into Ingevity to accelerate commercialization and broaden its automotive carbon and ANG capabilities; terms were not disclosed.

DFW Capital Partners completed an investment in IntelliSite Corporation, a provider of IoT-enabled surveillance, monitoring and computer-vision solutions. The investment will support IntelliSite’s service capability expansion and growth (including potential acquisitions) and coincides with the appointment of Ken Mills as CEO.

Cherry Bekaert has acquired Tax Advantage Group (TAG), a Greenville, South Carolina-based specialist in New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) services. TAG will operate as Tax Advantage Group by Cherry Bekaert, bringing six professionals and deep NMTC expertise to expand Cherry Bekaert’s Credits & Incentives practice and capability to serve community-development and nonprofit-oriented projects nationwide.

Eye Health America (EHA), a PE‑backed eye care practice management platform based in Atlanta, acquired two South Carolina optometry practices — Dillon Eyecare Associates and Pee Dee Eye Associates — expanding its network in the Pee Dee region (Dillon, Hartsville and Sumter). The deals add primary eyecare and optical capabilities and deepen EHA's integrated care footprint and referral relationships with regional surgery centers such as Carolinas Centers for Sight and Clemson Eye.

TurnPoint Services Group has acquired Meetze Plumbing Co., Inc., a Columbia, South Carolina-based plumbing and sewer services provider. The deal adds a locally established brand and technical/service capacity as TurnPoint expands its footprint in the Carolinas; founder Kevin Meetze will remain leading Meetze's operations.

Francisco Partners has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Smith Technologies, a wholly owned subsidiary of J M Smith Corporation; the company will be rebranded as RedSail Technologies. Terms were not disclosed; Francisco Partners says the investment will provide capital to accelerate growth, expand market share and geographic footprint as an independent business. Kraig McEwen will join as CEO and the company will continue to operate its QS/1, Integra and PUBLIQ product families from its Spartanburg, South Carolina headquarters.

On February 21, 2020 Prairie Capital VI, LP partnered with founders Mark and Karen Essex to recapitalize Netalytics, a Greer, South Carolina provider of electronic medical records (EMR) and practice management solutions serving the substance use disorder (SUD) / opioid use disorder (OUD) market. Prairie Capital said it will support growth through investments in human capital, sales and marketing, technology and infrastructure, service-line expansion and add-on acquisitions.

Atlantic Corporation (Atlantic Packaging) acquired Coastal Corrugated, a 35-year-old family-owned corrugated box and custom protective packaging manufacturer in North Charleston, South Carolina. The deal expands Atlantic's converted-products and corrugated manufacturing capabilities and strengthens its service offering to automotive manufacturers and tier-one suppliers in the Southeast.

Stanley-Martin Communities, LLC (Stanley Martin Homes) agreed to acquire the homebuilding assets and operations of Columbia-based Essex Homes, a regional homebuilder active in South Carolina and North Carolina. The deal (expected to close by end of February 2020) brings Essex’s leadership and market operations into Stanley Martin as part of the buyer’s southeastern U.S. expansion; Essex founder Karl Haslinger will join Stanley Martin as a Regional President.

Hospice Care of South Carolina (HCSC), a portfolio company of The Vistria Group, acquired Agapé Hospice to create the largest hospice provider in South Carolina. The combined organization will operate across all 46 counties with more than 800 employees and care for over 1,400 patients; financial terms were not disclosed.