LEXINGTON, Ky. (BRAIN) — Private equity firm MiddleGround Capital announced Tuesday that it acquired HLC. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
HLC President Pat McGinnis will continue to oversee operations and the distribution centers in North America.
According to a news release, the transaction will enhance HLC's ongoing efforts to provide its customers with a complete catalog of product offerings across established and new brands, and its owned brands.
"Today marks a very positive development for HLC, and we are eager to begin working with the MiddleGround team as we amplify our growth efforts," McGinnis said. "MiddleGround brings a distinct style with distinguished operational expertise, and we knew this would be a strong fit from the start. We are looking forward to working together to better serve the needs of bike stores and retailers through an expansion of geographic reach, product portfolio, and end market exposure."
Headquartered in Lévis, Quebec, and Lexington, South Carolina, HLC was founded 75 years ago and is a distribution partner to established and start-up brands. HLC distributes more than 170 leading brands in the cycling world, including SRAM, Shimano, Garmin, ABUS, RockShox, Kuat, Tacx, and Muc-Off. HLC's portfolio of owned brands include Evo, WheelShop, PWR bikes, and Eclypse.
"With the ongoing increase in bicycle ridership, which accelerated due to technological advances in the industry and the re-introduction of cycling to the masses during COVID, HLC is in a great position for long-term growth," said John Stewart, MiddleGround founding partner. "We are excited to partner with Pat and the team to expand HLC's geographic footprint and make investments in technology and infrastructure that allow HLC to both better serve existing customers, as well as attract new customers. For MiddleGround Capital, this is the beginning of our investment in a platform that we believe can grow exponentially with the right strategic partner."
MiddleGround Capital is based in Lexington, Kentucky, with more than $2 billion of assets under management. MiddleGround makes control equity investments in middle-market B2B industrial and specialty distribution businesses. MiddleGround works with its portfolio companies to create value through a hands-on operational approach and partners with its management teams to support long-term growth strategies.
