March 2021

The contents of this newsletter are intended for the exclusive use of Red Forest Capital funds. Access to the Knowledge-base and to materials included in this newsletter is limited to Red Forest Capital search funds. Previous editions can be found at redforestcapital.com.

Happy Women's History Month and International Women’s Day (March 8th). Please join us in celebrating the many social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of all women who have changed our world for the better - and starting with our mothers!

WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH

• Thank you to the participants of Kellogg’s Women in Search Funds panel; Audrey Kohout, Jackie Kopcho, Lori Harrington & Tarra Sharp

• Top States for Women-led Startups

• Women-Led Startups Received Just 2.3% of VC Funding in 2020

• Institutional investors push for incorporation of diversity, equity, and inclusion in private markets portfolios

Additionally, the following are a number of resources to help you in your pursuit of an acquisition. Contact us if and when we can be of help. In the meantime, please find a selection of resources below to support your efforts. 

COMPANY DATA PILOT. We are conducting a limited data service pilot to offer search funds lists of potential targets. More to come as the pilot develops. Within Research / Companies are lists for Learning Content Management and Course Authoring Solutions; Corporate Learning Management Systems & Transportation & Logistics. These lists were initially created during my search fund and the sources and the data procurement methods are numerous. We aim to continue to develop technology and publish the data with you. If you would like to participate in the pilot, respond to the following survey by Friday, 5 March 2021, and 1700 ET. We will review the requests the week of 8 March 2021; distribute a summary of the results and outline the next steps.

SHARED INTERNSHIP TRAINING. For anyone with unpaid interns and in need of additional educational programming, consider participating in Lori Harrington and Ryan Kelly’s knowledge-sharing sessions which are intended to enrich the internship experience and distribute the responsibility of training. All funds and interns are invited with a request that each fund host or lead a session. Planned sessions include financial modeling, industry overviews, career and interview guidance, and more. If you are interested in hosting a session, complete the following form and contact Ryan Kelly with any questions.

KNOWLEDGE-BASE UPDATES Available to Red Forest Capital investments Only 

• RFC The First 100 Days of a Search Fund, and a presentation we hosted for Harvard among others

• TEMPLATE Operating Model designed to help you create proformas, CAC, LTV for a variety of products and employee types

• CIBC Small Business COVID Package Section

INDUSTRY RESEARCH IN THE KNOWLEDGE-BASE Since 1 February 2021. Available to Red Forest Capital investments Only 

• Loan Brokers

• Medical Claims Processing

• Model Agencies

• Online Legal Services

• Organic Chemical Pipeline Transportation

• Performers & Creative Artists

• Ski & Snowboard Resorts

• Specialized Storage & Warehousing

• Sports Franchises

  Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) Manufacturing

• Arcade Food & Entertainment

• Blow Molding Machinery Manufacturing

• Business & IT Certification Schools

• Carbon Fiber & Graphene Manufacturing

• Cemetery Services

• Community & Junior Colleges

• Dating Services

• Farm Product Storage & Warehousing

• Freight Packing & Logistics

• High-Frequency Trading

• Insurance Claims Processing Software

IDEAS 

• Focused Robotic Process Automation (RPA) like Gavin Smarter Technologies

• Labeling and Packaging services providers, and a relatively fragmented industry benefiting from increased e-commerce, which may also have contractual recurring revenue

• Safety management software such as Safesite or Donesafe

• Tree Care, Lawn Care and Landscape Bidding & Estimating Software such as Arborgold

• Swiss bank, Bordier & Cie, partnered with Sygnum Bank to offer bitcoin execution-only services

• Leading players in the race to make large-scale carbon capture technology a reality

TIPS & TRICKS

• Kevin Barton, SVP of BankProv is the new leader of the search fund lending team

• Search for Seller and/or Banker legal history

• Research Resources. American Investment Council, Encyclopedia of Associations, Small Business Investor Alliance

• Company Research. SAM.Gov, SBA Company Search, MicroAcquire

• Art of Communicating Risk

• Ways to repurpose webinar content

• LinkedIn Pages updated with new features, including Stories

M&A SPOTLIGHT. Selection of Deals that correspond with industries of interest to Red Forest Capital funds. More transactions are listed at the bottom of this email. 

• 2021 AgriFoodTech Investment Report

• AgEagle Aerial Systems acquired MicaSense for $23M

• AgTech.io acquired Fusionware, a cloud-based produce supply chain company

• AsTech acquired adasThink, a car calibration software company

• ITW to acquire MTS Test & Simulation business from Ampheno

• JPMorgan has ‘sense of urgency’ in search for acquisitions

• MAPAL Software acquired GetCompliant, a leading compliance focused on retail and restaurants

• Mintra Holding acquired the maritime digital learning, Safebridge for $7.15MM

• Nelnet's acquired Catholic Faith Technologies, an online learning, and formation platform company

• North America’s Largest Lithium-Ion Battery Resource Recycling Company, to List on NYSE

• Oak Hill to buy American Veterinary Group

• Renaissance Holding acquired Nearpod, an K-12 platform used to create videos, quizzes, questions, and other activities for $650M

• UP Professional Solutions, an employment sourcing company for the petrochemical and specialty manufacturing industries

• Visma acquired Brincr, an order processing, stock management, purchasing, CRM, and invoicing

• Xytech Systems acquired ScheduALL a workforce management solution for $6MM

• Learn it Systems acquires Behavior Analysis Center for Autism 

• Kaseya International Limited acquires RocketCyber 

INTERESTING

• You just bought a small business. Now it's time to lead

• BETA-i Canada's Search Fund Incubator Focused on Supporting Black Entrepreneurs

• Unsolicited Buyout Offers

• Avoid junk mail

• How Digital Trust Varies Around the World, and a study of attitudes, behaviors, environment, and experience across economies

• Jerome Powell suggested that he would need congressional authorization to proceed with cryptocurrency issuance

• Regarding bitcoin's and Tesla's valuation, Charlie Munger said, "I don't know which is worse."

• J.P. Morgan tested an internet of things (IoT) blockchain payment between two satellites orbiting the Earth

• The pandemic has been a boon for the creators, Clubhouse @ 2M users; Patreon @ 6M creators; Substack up to 250k paid users; and Mark Cuban’s audio platform Fireside

• Rising influence of online communities

• Students asking for help bringing $75,000 Black history curriculum to their school

• Educational authorities begin looking into innovative options for summer learning

• Why We Build New Nukes from the Bulletin Of The Atomic Scientists

• A CEO’s Guide to Planning a Return to the Office

• Used car prices up 6% from the year before

• Fans of the movie Cars - Oshkosh to design USPS delivery vehicles

• A new wave of startups is trying to disrupt college online teaching

• Companies Hacked Websites at MIT, Stanford, Columbia and 100+ Other Schools

M&A, PRIVATE EQUITY & INDUSTRY UPDATES

AEROSPACE & DEFENSE

• Global Infrastructure to acquire Signature Aviation in $4.6B deal

• SPAC Atlas Crest to acquire vertical-aircraft maker Archer at $3.8B valuation

AGRICULTURE & FOOD

• Alfa Laval acquired Sandymount to strengthen its position in beer production

• Fusionware announced that its platform operations have been acquired by AgTech

• Jubilant FoodWorks acquired Fides Foodthat, a consumer foodservice company for $34MM

B2B

• Applied Insight acquired Bridges a consulting company serving the intelligence community

• BG Staffing acquired Momentum Solution, an implementer of ERP systems for $3.8MM

• Diligent acquired Steele Compliance, an ethics & compliance management

• HireQuest acquired Link Staffing for $11MM

• Life On Earth acquired KloudGaze, an enterprise software compliance solution

• MSA Safety acquired Bristol Uniforms, a firefighter gear manufacturer at $60M

• Proofpoint acquired InteliSecure, a managed security services provider for $62.5M

• BrandMaker acquires Rubicon Technology Partners

CONSUMER

• DoorDash acquired robotics specialist Chowbotics

• Goodyear acquires Cooper Tire & Rubber Company for $2.8BN

• L Catterton acquired BIRKENSTOCK Group, the footwear brand

EDUCATION

• EAB acquired Hobsons’ student success platform for $90MM

• Huron acquired data strategy and tech consulting firm Unico Solution

• IBM acquired Salesforce consultancy 7Summits

• The Kimberley Nursery School and Fairoak Nursery School will merge, caring for children until they reach four years of age

• Learning Technologies Group acquired Bridge, a learning, performance, and skills development platform for $50MM

• Teachers of Tomorrow acquired The Learning Liaisons, a platform that delivers teacher exam preparation provider

ENERGY

• Drax Group to acquire Pinnacle Renewable Energy for C$831M

• Enerplus to acquire Bruin E&P Holdco in $465M deal

ENVIRONMENT & RELATED

• Aqua Pennsylvania acquired East Whiteland Township municipal wastewater assets

• Digitizing the Sustainability Journey, highlighting where actions can be taken, and future-proofing against potential risks

• Water issues and water testing solutions from PerkinElmer

FINANCE & INSURANCE

• AmeriServ Financial acquired a branch and deposits of Riverview Financial

• Banyan Software acquired Dominion Leasing Software, an equipment finance asset management solution

• B. Riley Financial acquired National Holdings, expanding wealth unit

• BancorpSouth Bank acquired FNS Bancshares

• CBIZ acquired Middle Market Advisory Group Of Richey May & Co.

• Cinaport acquired Coinberry Limited, a financial technology solutions provider focused on blockchain and crypto-asset solutions

• CURO acquired Flexiti Financial for $121M

• Equifax acquired AI-driven fraud prevention provider for $640M

• FLEETCOR acquired cloud-based platform of B2B online payment solutions

• IDS acquired William Stucky and Associates, asset-based lending and factoring software

• Moody’s acquired credit data and insights provider, Cortera

• Stock Yards Bancorp acquired Kentucky Bancshares for ~$190M

• TCF National Bank acquired BB&T Commercial Equipment Capital

• Transactions Services Group and Clearent merged to form Xplor Technologies, a payments and software company

• Virtus Investment Partners acquired Westchester Capital Management

FRANCHISES

• Foodtastic acquired the Second Cup, a coffee retailer, and franchisor for $14MM

• Franchise Group to acquire Pet Supplies Plus for $700M

HEALTH CARE

• Allergan Aesthetics enters option acquired a medical device company

• AmerisourceBergen acquired Walgreens' Alliance Healthcare for $6.5B

• Ardian and Quadriga Capital acquired GBA Group, a testing, and certification company for laboratory services

• ATI Physical Therapy merges with Fortress Value Acquisition Corp

• Boston Scientific to acquire Preventice Solutions for $925M

• Bright HealthCare acquired True Health New Mexico

• CareDx acquired TransChart to expand EMR coverage to over 90 centers

• Calian acquired Dapasoft that creates bridges across the deep chasm of healthcare data silos for $50MM

• Charles River to acquire Cognate Bioservices for ~$875M

• Cigna acquired MDLive, a telehealth provider

• CloudMD acquired Aspiria for $3M

• CNO Financial Group acquired DirectPath, an employee engagement and health care compliance for $50MM

• DaySmart Software acquired Vetter Software, a provider of cloud-based veterinary practice management software

• Haemonetics to acquire Cardiva Medical to expand hospital portfolio

• Hermon Laboratories to acquire Ribbon's Qualitech testing and standardization business

• Heska acquired Lacuna Diagnostics, a Point-of-Care Digital Cytology company

• Hillrom inks agreement to acquire Bardy Diagnostics for $375M in cash

• Icon Clinical Research Limited acquires PRA Health Sciences for $12BN

• IMAC acquired Synergy Healthcare, expanding Florida presence

• InfuSystem acquired biomedical services company FilAMed

• Itamar Medical acquired Spry Health

• Medivolve acquired Noble Bioscience

• MindMed acquired HealthMode, a clinical research and patient monitoring company for $33MM 

• Nuance acquired Saykara a provider of automated clinical documentation

• Oncocyte acquired Chronix Biomedical

• Optimus Healthcare signs letter of intent acquired Painscript

• PerkinElmer acquired Oxford Immunotec for $591M

• PharmaDrug acquired Sairiyo Therapeutics

• Tenax Therapeutics acquired PH Precision Med

• Veracyte acquired Decipher Biosciences

• MindMed acquired HealthMode a tech provider supporting clinical research for $0.2MM

• Volpara Solutions acquired CRA Health, a risk assessment screening & prevention tools for $18MM

HOSPITALITY, TRAVEL & RECREATION 

• GreenBox POS acquired ChargeSavvy for $31.2M

• NextGuest acquired Cendyn, a provider of digital marketing services for the hospitality industry

• Trivago acquired weekend.com

INDUSTRIALS & MANUFACTURING

• 2021 Manufacturing Industry Outlook from Deloitte

• Avery Dennison acquired JDC Solutions, a manufacturer of pressure-sensitive specialty tapes for $24MM

• Federal Signal acquired OSW Equipment and Repair, a dump truck and trailer equipment and repair company for $52.5MM

• IDEX acquired Abel Pumps for $103.5M

• iTAC Software acquired Cogiscan a track, trace, and control solution for electronics manufacturing

• Industrials and Lab Developments from PerkinElmer

• KKR acquired Flow Control from Bertram Capital

• Littlefuse acquired Heartland Controls, an electrical components supplier for $70MM

• Stratasys acquired polymer 3D printer RP Support

• Top 50 Lower Middle Market Industrial Investors & M&A Advisors

• Worthington acquired General Tools & Instruments for $115M

LEGAL & RELATED

• Anaqua acquired global IP cost estimating software provider Quantify IP

MARKETING & ADVERTISING

• Civicom acquired Fugent, an insight and engagement management platform

• Fiverr acquired creative firm Working Not Working

• Publicis Groupe acquired Octopus Group to boost its B2B capabilities

• Sagenet acquired Convergent Media Systems, a business media distribution network for $23.2MM

• Trailhead Media acquired Wingate Media Group, an indoor digital billboard advertising company

• Twitter acquired Revue to bring paid newsletters to the platform

• Whyline acquired RSVD, a mobile platform that helps businesses connect with their customers

MEDIA & ENTERTAINMENT

• Acast acquired RadioPublic, a provider of podcast tools

• Asmodee acquired Board Game Arena, an online board game platform

• Bally's to acquire Monkey Knife Fight in bid to expand in gaming, fantasy sports

• Carlyle acquired British RuneScape video game creator Jagex

• Cinedigm acquired Fandor with plans to relaunch indie film service

• Gray Television acquired Quincy Media for $925M

• iHeartMedia acquired Triton Digital for $230M

• Lucid Sight acquired Colyseus, an open-source multiplayer game engine

• Motorsport Games acquired KartKraft

• Netmarble acquired a majority stake in Kung Fu Factory, an independent game developer

• Sofar Sounds acquired Seated, a ticketing services platform for live music

• Tencent Music acquired Lazy Audio

• Urban TV Network acquired studio for $30M deal

• Unilog acquired Bravo Business Media, an eCommerce solution for decorative showrooms

MINING

• Silver Elephant acquired Minago Nickel Project

REAL ESTATE & RELATED

• Cushman reports 10% drop in revenue in 2020

• Fortnox acquired Offerta Group, an online platform for renovation, moving, or cleaning for $36MM

• LafargeHolcim acquired Firestone Building Products from Bridgestone Americas for $3.4B

• MRI Software acquired Trimble's real estate and workplace solutions business

• Newmark Knight Frank acquired Knotel, a workspace platform for $70MM

• Redfin acquired RentPath for $608M

• TopBuild acquired residential, commercial insulation company

• Western Alliance acquired B2B mortgage acquirer & servicer, AmeriHome

RETAIL & WHOLESALE

• Emerald acquired PlumRiver to expand digital commerce capabilities

• Foodtastic acquired the Second Cup, a coffee retailer, and franchisor for $14MM

• Lazydays Holdings to acquire Chilhowee RV Center

• Tractor Supply acquired Orscheln Farm and Home

TECHNOLOGY

• Accenture acquired cloud engineering services company Imaginea

• AdaCore acquired Componolit, a provider of software for trusted systems to mobile and IoT security

• Allegion acquired technology company Yonomi

• Chart Industries acquired Cryo Technologies for $55MM

• Citrix acquired Wrike for $2.25B to boost workspace delivery platform

• CloudMD Software & Service acquired Rxi Group for $9.5M

• Cognizant acquired software services company Magenic to bolster Softvision business

• Corcentric acquired Vendorin, a spend and revenue management software company for $100MM

• Cortex acquired ITB360, a provider of business data-as-a-service for sales intelligence

• CrowdStrike acquired Humio, a provider of cloud log management and observability technology for $400MM

• Deloitte acquired The Working Group Inc. ("TWG"), a data platforms

• Expereo acquired Videns IT Services, a provider of managed SD-WAN and SASE solutions

• Kaleyra acquired mGage, a cloud-based enterprise mobile messaging platform for $215MM

• OpenBots acquired MyOfficeBot, a provider of RPA-as-a-Service solutions

• Palo Alto Networks acquired Bridgecrew, a developer-first cloud security company for $156MM

• PGT Innovations to acquire Eco Window for $108M

• Porch Group acquired a marketing and data services provider to transform mover marketing

• Protolabs (PRLB) inks agreement to acquire 3D Hubs for $280M

• Proofpoint acquired InteliSecure, a managed security services provider for $62.5MM

• Sagenet acquired Convergent Media Systems, a business television media distribution network for $23.2MM

• Sensata Technologies acquired Xirgo Technologies for $400M

• Snap acquired mapping start-up StreetCred

• Xerox acquired CareAR in software expansion

• Zadara acquired NeoKarm, an edge cloud provider and leader in enterprise storage-as-a-service

TELECOMMUNICATIONS

• Global M&A Industry Trends in Technology, Media & Telecommunications

• Pandemic's Media and Telecom M&A Impact "Has Been More Muted", down 18%

• Telecoms industry not expected to fully recover until 2023

TRANSPORTATION & LOGISTICS

• Antares Vision acquired rfxcel, a provider in supply chain track and trace solutions for $120MM

• Freightcom acquired ShipGooder, a site that compares delivery rates from various couriers

• TFI International acquired UPS Freight for $800M

WASTE MANAGEMENT

• Waste Management CEO says economy 'ready to take off,' major M&A likely done

• $180M worth of M&A in Q4 2020

• Garbage is Evolutionary and the Outlook for 2021

FUN  

• What to Expect From Travel in 2021

• Pairing Beer With Asian-Style Food Is Easier Than You Think

• Disposables - future of photo sharing?

• How to get a COVID-19 vaccine by volunteering