Highlander Partners Participates in Successful Sale of Truck Hero
December 07, 2020 – Dallas, TX – Highlander Partners (“Highlander”) today announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement under which a consortium led by L Catterton and its affiliates will acquire a controlling interest in Truck Hero®, Inc. (“the Company”), the leading provider of functional aftermarket accessories for pickup trucks and Jeep® vehicles.
Highlander acquired Lund International (“Lund”) in April 2011 and after nine add-ons acquisitions, merged it with Truck Hero in May 2019. Partnering with CCMP Capital (“CCMP”), who acquired Truck Hero from TA Associates in 2017, Highlander assisted in growing Truck Hero into a clear leader in aftermarket automotive accessories. Highlander and CCMP, among other shareholders, and Truck Hero’s founding Chief Executive Officer, Bill Reminder, will remain meaningful investors in the Company. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Founded in 2007, Truck Hero is the industry-leading innovator, manufacturer, and marketer of branded functional truck and Jeep accessories that enhance the experience for consumers’ daily activities and enthusiast lifestyles. Through superior engineering and innovation, established customer relationships, and strategic acquisitions, Truck Hero has grown rapidly and today is the undisputed leader in its core products and channels. The Company is recognized as a trusted partner to the dealer community for which it provides category-defining products and service, and it has established a leading online presence selling directly to consumers through RealTruck.com.
“We are very pleased to see the success that Truck Hero has achieved during our ownership period. From our early investment in Lund, we were aware that this industry was ripe for consolidation and to see this transpire as desired is very gratifying.” said Jeff L. Hull, President and CEO of Highlander and a Director of Truck Hero. Mr. Hull added, “Bill Reminder and his team have demonstrated incredible vision and executed a perfect strategy. We believe they will continue to have immense success and L Catterton is an ideal partner to take Truck Hero to another level. We have thoroughly enjoyed our partnership with CCMP and really appreciate the close working arrangement we had. This is an outstanding outcome for everyone.”
The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2021, subject to customary closing conditions. Jefferies LLC is serving as lead financial advisor, Robert W. Baird & Co. is serving as financial advisor, and Ropes & Gray LLP is acting as legal counsel to Truck Hero. Katten is serving as legal counsel to Highlander. BofA Securities is serving as financial advisor and Kirkland & Ellis LLP is acting as legal counsel to the L Catterton led consortium. Debt financing will be provided by Jefferies and BofA Securities.
About Truck Hero
Headquartered in Ann Arbor, Michigan, Truck Hero provides consumers a full range of branded automotive accessories for trucks, Jeep® brand vehicles and cars, with market leading functionality, engineering, quality, and design. The breadth of Truck Hero’s product offering is vast, including hard and soft truck bed covers, truck caps, bed liners, floor liners, fender flares, steps, suspension kits, Ventvisors®, Jeep® brand vehicle parts and off-road accessories. Truck Hero’s industry leading family of brands includes Advantage Truck Accessories™, Alloy USA™, AMP Research®, A.R.E.®, Auto Ventshade®, BAK Industries®, BACKRACK®, BedRug®, Belmor®, Bushwacker®, Extang®, Husky Liners®, LUND®, N-FAB®, OMIX™, Rampage Products®, Retrax®, RoadWorks®, Roll-N-Lock®, Rugged Liner®, Rugged Ridge®, Stampede™, Superlift®, Tonno Pro®, TruXedo®, UnderCover® and an online retailer, RealTruck®. All of the companies in the Truck Hero family are recognized as premier brands and are leaders in innovation. For more information, please visit our website at www.truck-hero.com.
About Highlander Partners, L.P.
Highlander Partners, L.P. is a Dallas-based private investment firm with over $2.0 billion of assets under management. The firm focuses on making investments in businesses in targeted industries in which the principals of the firm have significant operating and investing experience, including basic manufacturing, food, chemicals, building materials, consumer products, and others. Highlander Partners uses a “buy and build” investment approach, creating value by helping companies grow organically and through acquisitions. For more information, visit www.highlander-partners.com.