Arsenal Capital Partners, a New York-based private equity firm, has completed the sale of portfolio company IDQ to Castle Harlan for approximately USD170m.
The sale of IDQ, which is expected to return in excess of 8x invested capital, follows Arsenal’s April 2010 sale of Genovique Specialties which returned to investors 12x invested capital.
IDQ is a provider of air conditioning maintenance and repair solutions for the Do-It-Yourself automotive aftermarket in North America. It sells its products to consumers through a blue-chip customer base representing approximately 25,000 retail stores. These include national chains such as AutoZone, Advance Auto Parts, Wal-Mart, O’Reilly, Napa and Pep Boys.
IDQ was formed in 2007 with the acquisition of EF Products by Interdynamics, an Arsenal portfolio company acquired in 2002.
"We worked with management to develop and execute a long-term investment strategy in line with our commitment to continuously grow and strengthen the company," says Terry Mullen (pictured), a partner and co-founder of Arsenal. "With a focus on product innovation, development of a best-in-class manufacturing facility and a key acquisition to complete the IDQ platform, we were able to position IDQ for long-term sustainable success."
"It was a great pleasure working with the Arsenal team who were extremely focused in accelerating the growth of IDQ by strengthening our senior management team, improving product quality and manufacturing, and investing in the company’s R&D that was critical in the development of value-added products," adds IDQ chief executive Michael Klein. "We thank them for providing strategic thinking and continual support that helped lead to this successful realisation."
