Cathay Capital North American-Sino Fund (Cathay Capital) has led the recapitalisation of Innovative Office Products (Innovative), a North American designer and manufacturer of office and workspace ergonomic and related products including monitor arms, sit-stand workstations, multi-monitor mounts and desk stands, point-of-sale (POS) mounts and healthcare and specialty Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) mounting solutions.
Cathay has partnered with management, Norwest Mezzanine Partners (Norwest) and ORIX Mezzanine & Private Equity (ORIX) in this investment.
Based in Easton, Pennsylvania, Innovative began as a family-owned operation in 1986 and has grown into a global company over the past 30 plus years. The Company designs, develops and assembles leading products in the US and sells into multiple markets including corporate offices, retailers, hospitality providers, hospitals and other healthcare providers, and to the government. Currently, Innovative serves North America, Europe (through its Copenhagen office) and Australia.
Cathay’s cross-border strategy focuses on providing access for its North American portfolio companies to resources and networks in China and Europe to establish sales relationships, improve operating and sourcing capabilities, and to enhance the strategic capabilities of portfolio companies in key global markets. Additionally, Cathay helps strengthen client and strategic relations throughout its own offices in China, Europe and other parts of the world. Innovative has the desire to more rapidly expand globally given the appeal of ergonomics and specialty-mounting products across markets. Cathay’s successful experience with Germantown, WI-based Raffel Systems, a specialist in the furniture motion controls industry, paved the way for Innovative to seek out Cathay’s unique cross-border strategy.
“The office furniture industry has been growing in a very healthy fashion in North America as an increasing percentage of professionals and employers are paying attention to ergonomics and smart office products that enhance workplace health and wellness while improving employee productivity. Cathay Capital’s North America China and European teams are excited to work with Innovative to accelerate the Company’s growth,” says Mingpo Cai, Co-Founder and President of Cathay Capital. “We are thrilled to partner with Norwest and ORIX in the recapitalisation of Innovative and to fuel the rapid expansion of Innovative over the coming years, organically and through add-on acquisitions. This investment matches our strategy of helping forward-thinking North American companies identify and realise cross-border opportunities in China and Europe where Cathay has an extensive footprint and ecosystem,” says Mark Woods, Partner of Cathay Capital.
On behalf of the Innovative management team, CEO David Fox, says: “We are delighted to have Cathay Capital, ORIX and Norwest as partners supporting our global growth. Our strategic visions are perfectly aligned and we are excited to achieve dynamic growth on multiple continents as we develop innovative ergonomic and mounting solutions to satisfy expanding demand for products that improve health, wellness and productivity.”
Cleary Gull Inc acted as exclusive financial advisor to IOP Holdings, LLC in this transaction. TCF Capital Funding provided a senior credit facility in the recapitalisation.
