Tag Archives for: Venture Capital

Metropolis Technologies, Inc. to Acquire SP Plus Corporation for $1.5 Billion

October 06, 2023

 

 

Metropolis Technologies, Inc. to Acquire SP Plus Corporation for $1.5 Billion

 

 

 

SP Plus Corporation stockholders to receive $54.00 per share in cash, representing a 52% premium to the closing stock price on October 4, 2023 and a 28% premium to the 52-week high

Combination of Metropolis Technologies, Inc. and SP Plus Corporation provides clients with additional opportunities to enhance the consumer experience and improve efficiencies

Metropolis Technologies, Inc. has secured $1.7 billion in committed financing led by Eldridge and 3L Capital, along with new investors including BDT & MSD Partners’ affiliated credit funds, Vista Credit Partners, and Temasek

 

LOS ANGELES & CHICAGO—-Metropolis Technologies, Inc. (“Metropolis”), a technology company whose computer vision platform enables checkout-free payment experiences, and SP® Plus Corporation (Nasdaq:SP) (“SP+”), a best-in-class technology and operations management provider of mobility services for aviation, commercial, hospitality, and institutional clients throughout North America and Europe, today announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement under which Metropolis will acquire SP+ for $54.00 per share in cash. This represents a premium of approximately 52% to the SP+ closing stock price on October 4, 2023 and approximately 28% to its 52-week high for an aggregate enterprise value of approximately $1.5 billion.

Metropolis develops and deploys leading-edge computer vision technology that creates a “drive in and drive out” payment experience for consumers while increasing transparency, capturing revenue and reducing costs for real estate owners. To date, Metropolis has focused on bringing this checkout-free technology to its managed parking facilities, enabling top-tier real estate owners in 40+ major U.S. metropolitan centers to capture revenue from more than five million consumers who do not have to stop to pay. Metropolis was founded in 2017 and is led by Alex Israel, Travis Kell, Peter Fisher, and Courtney Fukuda.

SP+ is a best-in-class technology and operations management provider, with a long track record of bringing together innovative solutions with superior service. SP+ has over 20,000 team members who manage approximately two million parking spaces and provide services at over 3,300 commercial locations and over 160 airports. Through its Sphere Commerce technology solutions, SP+ offers clients a compelling value proposition and the ability to implement technology upgrades that enable frictionless transactions.

Metropolis and SP+ share a vision of enhancing the consumer experience utilizing technology while improving efficiencies. With the acquisition of SP+, Metropolis will be able to bring new capabilities to North America’s leading network with operations in over 360 cities, serving millions of consumers and processing over $4 billion in payments annually. This expanded market for checkout-free payment experiences offers new opportunities for property owners and managers to capture value and reduce inefficiencies.

“Today we announced a transformational acquisition that represents both a new paradigm in how technology companies grow and a significant step forward in offering consumers a remarkable experience,” said Alex Israel, Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Metropolis. “SP+ is a phenomenal business whose operational excellence, talented leadership team and high customer satisfaction levels have long made it a key partner to real estate owners across North America. The combined platform will seek to bring checkout-free payment experiences to consumers.”

Israel continued, “While transforming the parking experience is our focus and priority today, as we deploy our proven technology we see opportunity to offer checkout-free transaction experiences at even more places people go. From gas and electric vehicle-charging stations to drive-thrus and car washes, as well as retail stores, our computer vision platform enables people to transact in the physical world with even greater ease than we experience online. We’re excited about the future with our new colleagues from SP+.”

“This transaction delivers immediate and certain value to our stockholders at a substantial premium to current and historical trading levels. We expect the transaction to offer an exciting path forward for our team members, partners, clients and consumers in the U.S. and abroad. While our technology offerings are successfully fulfilling client and market demand, with increased investment, we see the opportunity to accelerate the technology roadmap for the benefit of our clients and their customers,” said Marc Baumann, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of SP+. “Combining with Metropolis will advance the pace of technology deployment, which will allow us to do more for existing clients and add new ones as we provide additional high-quality, cutting-edge client and consumer experiences.”

“Metropolis has built a thoughtful and differentiated platform that provides consumers with an efficient, frictionless experience,” said Tony Minella, Co-founder and President of Eldridge, an existing Metropolis investor that is leading the financing of the transaction. “We are excited to deepen our partnership with Alex and the rest of the Metropolis team and to support their efforts to accelerate the company’s vision, and are proud to work with a tremendous group of investors that will support the company’s growth.”

Transaction Details

Metropolis has obtained commitments for equity and debt financing totaling $1.7 billion to complete the transaction, consisting of $1.05 billion in Series C preferred stock financing and $650 million of debt financing. These financing commitments are led by Eldridge and existing Metropolis investor 3L Capital, along with new investors including BDT & MSD Partners’ affiliated credit funds, Vista Credit Partners, and Temasek. Other existing investors, Slow Ventures and Assembly Ventures, participated. Metropolis will use the net proceeds to finance the acquisition of SP+, while retaining significant capital on its balance sheet.

The transaction is expected to close in 2024, subject to receipt of required regulatory approvals and approval of SP+’s stockholders, as well as other customary closing conditions. The boards of directors of both companies have unanimously approved the transaction, and the board of directors of SP+ recommends that SP+ stockholders vote in favor of the transaction. Upon completion of the transaction, shares of SP+ common stock will no longer trade publicly. Metropolis will continue to be founder-led and founder-controlled as a private company, with participation by other equity investors.

Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC and BDT & MSD Partners, LLC are serving as financial advisors to Metropolis. Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC acted as placement agent on the Series C transaction, and Maranon Capital L.P. (an Eldridge affiliate) and Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC acted as joint lead arrangers on the debt financing. Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP and Fenwick & West LLP are serving as legal advisors to Metropolis. Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC. is serving as financial advisor to SP+, and Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP is serving as legal advisor to SP+. Sidley Austin LLP is serving as legal advisor to Eldridge.

About Metropolis
Metropolis is an artificial intelligence company for the real world. Metropolis’ computer vision platform enables people to transact in the physical world with even greater ease than we experience online. Today, we are reimagining parking. Because it’s important, it’s everywhere, and impacts everyone – enabling millions of consumers to just “drive in and drive out” – that’s it. Tomorrow, we will power “checkout-free” experiences anywhere you go. www.metropolis.io

About SP+
SP+ (www.spplus.com) develops and integrates industry-leading technology with best-in-class operations management and support to deliver mobility solutions that enable the efficient and time-sensitive movement of people, vehicles, and personal travel belongings. With over 20,000 team members located throughout North America and Europe, SP+ is committed to providing solutions that make every moment matter for a world on the go.

About Eldridge
Eldridge invests in businesses across the Insurance, Asset Management, Technology, Mobility, Sports & Gaming, Media & Music, Real Estate, and Consumer landscapes. The firm seeks to build and grow businesses led by proven management teams that have demonstrated leadership and experience to scale an enterprise. Eldridge is headquartered in Greenwich, Connecticut, with additional offices across the United States and in London. To learn more about Eldridge, please visit www.eldridge.com.

About 3L
3L is a private equity firm that invests in emerging growth companies. The firm backs innovative founders and management teams across the Commerce, Enterprise Software and Tech-enabled Services landscapes, with a particular emphasis on opportunities where M&A and creative financing strategies can augment strong organic growth. 3L provides management teams with the capital, perspective, and relationships needed to become category leaders. The firm is based in Los Angeles and New York City. To learn more about 3L, please visit www.3lcap.com

Use of Forward-Looking Statements
This communication includes certain “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of, and subject to the safe harbor created by, the federal securities laws, including statements related to the proposed merger of SP+ with an affiliate of Metropolis (the “Transaction”), including financial estimates and statements as to the expected timing, completion and effects of the Transaction. These forward-looking statements are based on SP+’s current expectations, estimates and projections regarding, among other things, the expected date of closing of the Transaction and the potential benefits thereof, its business and industry, management’s beliefs and certain assumptions made by SP+, all of which are subject to change. Forward-looking statements often contain words such as “expect,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “aims,” “plan,” “believe,” “could,” “seek,” “see,” “will,” “may,” “would,” “might,” “considered,” “potential,” “estimate,” “continue,” “likely,” “expect,” “target” or similar expressions or the negatives of these words or other comparable terminology that convey uncertainty of future events or outcomes. By their nature, forward-looking statements address matters that involve risks and uncertainties because they relate to events and depend upon future circumstances that may or may not occur, such as the consummation of the Transaction and the anticipated benefits thereof. These and other forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future results and are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in any forward-looking statements. Important risk factors that may cause such a difference include, but are not limited to: (i) the completion of the Transaction on anticipated terms and timing, including obtaining required stockholder and regulatory approvals, and the satisfaction of other conditions to the completion of the Transaction; (ii) the ability of Metropolis to obtain the necessary financing arrangements set forth in the commitment letters received in connection with the Transaction; (iii) potential litigation relating to the Transaction that could be instituted against Metropolis, SP+ or their respective directors, managers or officers, including the effects of any outcomes related thereto; (iv) the risk that disruptions from the Transaction will harm SP+’s business, including current plans and operations; (v) the ability of SP+ to retain and hire key personnel; (vi) potential adverse reactions or changes to business relationships resulting from the announcement or completion of the Transaction; (vii) continued availability of capital and financing and rating agency actions; (viii) legislative, regulatory and economic developments affecting SP+’s business; (ix) general economic and market developments and conditions; (x) potential business uncertainty, including changes to existing business relationships, during the pendency of the Transaction that could affect SP+’s financial performance; (xi) certain restrictions during the pendency of the Transaction that may impact SP+’s ability to pursue certain business opportunities or strategic transactions; (xii) unpredictability and severity of catastrophic events, including but not limited to acts of terrorism, pandemics, outbreaks of war or hostilities, as well as SP+’s response to any of the aforementioned factors; (xiii) significant transaction costs associated with the Transaction; (xiv) the possibility that the Transaction may be more expensive to complete than anticipated, including as a result of unexpected factors or events; (xv) the occurrence of any event, change or other circumstance that could give rise to the termination of the Transaction, including in circumstances requiring SP+ to pay a termination fee or other expenses; (xvi) competitive responses to the Transaction; (xvii) the risks and uncertainties pertaining to SP+’s business, including those set forth in Part I, Item 1A of SP+’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and Part II, Item 1A of SP+’s subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, as such risk factors may be amended, supplemented or superseded from time to time by other reports filed by SP+ with the SEC; and (xviii) the risks and uncertainties that will be described in the Proxy Statement available from the sources indicated below. These risks, as well as other risks associated with the Transaction, will be more fully discussed in the Proxy Statement. While the list of factors presented here is, and the list of factors to be presented in the Proxy Statement will be, considered representative, no such list should be considered a complete statement of all potential risks and uncertainties. Unlisted factors may present significant additional obstacles to the realization of forward-looking statements. Consequences of material differences in results as compared with those anticipated in the forward-looking statements could include, among other things, business disruption, operational problems, financial loss, legal liability to third parties and similar risks, any of which could have a material impact on SP+’s financial condition, results of operations, credit rating or liquidity. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and SP+ does not undertake to and specifically disclaims any obligation to publicly release the results of any updates or revisions to these forward-looking statements that may be made to reflect future events or circumstances after the date of such statements or to reflect the occurrence of anticipated or unanticipated events.

Important Additional Information and Where to Find it
In connection with the proposed transaction between SP+ and Metropolis, SP+ will file with the SEC a Proxy Statement, the definitive version of which will be sent or provided to SP+ stockholders. SP+ may also file other documents with the SEC regarding the proposed transaction. This document is not a substitute for the Proxy Statement or any other document which SP+ may file with the SEC. INVESTORS AND SECURITY HOLDERS ARE URGED TO READ THE PROXY STATEMENT AND ANY OTHER RELEVANT DOCUMENTS THAT ARE FILED OR WILL BE FILED WITH THE SEC, AS WELL AS ANY AMENDMENTS OR SUPPLEMENTS TO THESE DOCUMENTS, CAREFULLY AND IN THEIR ENTIRETY BECAUSE THEY CONTAIN OR WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT THE PROPOSED TRANSACTION AND RELATED MATTERS. Investors and security holders may obtain free copies of the Proxy Statement (when it is available) and other documents that are filed or will be filed with the SEC by SP+ through the website maintained by the SEC at www.sec.gov, SP+’s website at www.spplus.com or by contacting SP+’s Investor Relations Team at:

SP Plus Corporation, Investor Relations
200 E. Randolph Street, Suite 7700
Chicago, Illinois 60601-7702
investor_relations@spplus.com
(312) 274-2000

Participants in the Solicitation
SP+ and certain of its directors, executive officers and other employees may be deemed to be participants in the solicitation of proxies from SP+’s stockholders with respect to the proposed transaction. Information about the participants, including their ownership of SP+’s securities, is set forth in the proxy statement for SP+’s 2023 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, which was filed with the SEC on March 30, 2023 (the “Annual Meeting Proxy Statement”). To the extent holdings of securities by the participants (or the identity of such participants) have changed since the information disclosed in the Annual Meeting Proxy Statement, such information has been or will be reflected on SP+’s Statements of Change in Ownership on Forms 3 and 4 filed with the SEC. You may obtain free copies of these documents using the sources indicated above. Investors may obtain more detailed information regarding the direct and indirect interests of SP+ and its respective directors, executive officers and other employees in the transaction, which may be different than those of stockholders generally, by reading the preliminary and definitive proxy statements regarding the transaction, which will be filed with the SEC.

In addition, Metropolis and certain of its directors, executive officers and other employees may be deemed to be participants in the solicitation of proxies from SP+’s stockholders in connection with the proposed transaction. Investors may obtain more detailed information about Metropolis’s directors, executive officers and other employees by reading SP+’s preliminary and definitive proxy statements regarding the transaction, which will be filed with the SEC.

Contacts

Metropolis
FGS Global
Kerry Golds, Robin Weinberg, and Jared Levy
metropolis@fgsglobal.com

SP+
AdvisIRy Partners
David Gold
david.gold@advisiry.com
212-661-2220

Eldridge
Nadia Damouni
ndamouni@prosek.com
646-818-9217

Get My Parking Raises $6M Funding from IvyCap and IAN Fund to Digitize Parking Industry Globally

May 27, 2021

 

 

 

 

Get My Parking Raises $6M Funding from IvyCap and IAN Fund to Digitize Parking Industry Globally

 

 

 

Bangalore –  Mobility startup and smart parking pioneer ‘Get My Parking’ (GMP) announced a fundraise of INR 43 crores led by IvyCap Ventures. Existing investor IAN Fund also participated in the round. Masterkey Holdings served as the investment banker.

 

Founded in 2015 by Chirag Jain and Rasik Pansare, GMP has digitized over 3000 parking lots across Europe, the US, and India. It will use the new funds to scale its IoT platform and extend its footprint in the US, LATAM, and Australia markets. The startup also plans to use the capital for hiring and expanding its team, with a focus on engineering and product teams.

 

Chirag Jain, CEO, Get My Parking, commented on the fund raise, “We are very excited for what lies ahead of us. Parking is an under-utilized real estate that is uniquely positioned to serve the changing urban needs. Our technology enables a seamless use of parking for shared mobility, storage and deliveries for e-commerce, EV charging, and on-the-fly automotive services. With our modular, affordable yet cutting-edge technology, we are confident of transforming parking lots into mobility hubs worldwide.”

 

 

Get My Parking’s open IoT platform is an end-to-end digital enabler for parking operators and facility managers around the world. It empowers them to offer their end consumers online discovery and transaction capability. The company’s technology upgrades physical parking lots into digital mobility hubs with contactless access and cashless payments. Operators can also launch their consumer app and loyalty programs in just two weeks with customizations. Behind the scenes, its IoT gate kit GMP Access can integrate any legacy parking equipment with any app or cloud software. This allows a host of multi vendor sensors to work in tandem with plug-n-play API integrations. This makes it possible for connected cars and autonomous vehicles to conduct machine-to-machine interactions with parking gates for automated entry and payments. Get My Parking offers its tech as a white-label Software-as-a-Service model.

 

Rasik Pansare, Co-Founder, Get My Parking, commented, “Parking infrastructure needs dozens of equipment and tech vendors. Most of these offer discrete pieces of functionalities that work in silos, typically offline. We provide operators with the technology they need to launch innovative digital offerings relevant to modern consumers. We have drastically improved their time to market, user experience, loyalty, revenue, and business diversification.”

 

Parking equipment collects a tremendous amount of data which is rarely tapped properly. Get My Parking’s solutions such as ‘GMP IQ’ and ‘GMP AI’ help make sense of that data through a configurable admin dashboard and other creative applications like dynamic pricing, occupancy predictions, intelligent enforcement, and so on. The smart parking startup’s latest product, ‘GMP Permit’ enables operators to digitally manage long-term parking permits and issue them to contract parkers online.

 

Commenting on the funding, Vikram Gupta, Founder and Managing Partner, IvyCap Ventures Advisors Pvt Ltd, said, “We are impressed by the Get My Parking team and what it has achieved in an underserved sector. We believe in the combination of their talent, technology, and strategy to truly transform the parking and mobility industry globally. Our investment in the company is aimed at helping them in their expansion and growth.”

 

Get My Parking has started working closely with automotive and logistics companies to solve the parking piece of the mobility puzzle. Recently, it announced a collaboration with Mercedes-Benz to assist end-users in discovering and navigating to a relevant parking lot.

 

Commenting on the funding, Saurabh Srivastava, Co-Founder of IAN, Past Chairman NASSCOM, said, “We are proud to have been part of Get My Parking’s journey in the past and are excited for its future. With several customers onboard globally, Get My Parking is perfectly poised to leverage this untapped opportunity with its sharp focus on execution.”

 

Get My Parking has deployed its solution for some of the largest parking operators in the world such as APCOA Parking, which operates across 9000+ locations in 13 countries. GMP has also performed deployments for early customers in Brazil, UAE, Australia, and Taiwan. It began its foray in the USA market last year by establishing a sales partnership with industry veteran ParkTrans and signing up two large parking operators. It will further invest in building a US office and team. With the latest fund raise, Get My Parking is prepared to grow its global footprint with newer products and markets.

 

About Get My Parking

 

Get My Parking (GMP) is an award-winning provider of an Interoperable Smart Parking Platform that connects all parking and mobility stakeholders operating in silos. With a clear mission to digitize the parking industry globally, its tech can retrofit legacy equipment and enable cloud native apps and a digital consumer experience. Get My Parking was founded in 2015 by Chirag Jain and Rasik Pansare with a vision to make every parking transaction a sub-conscious experience. With a strong foundation of team, technology and partnerships, GMP is creating a future-proof omni stack for the parking industry.

 

About IvyCap

IvyCap Ventures is one of the leading homegrown venture capital fund management companies in the country managing INR 1,500 crores across three funds. Founded by Vikram Gupta in 2011, the company has been leveraging global alumni ecosystems to build technology-driven innovative companies.

 

About IAN Fund

IAN Fund is an INR 375 crore fund launched by Indian Angel Network, which is India’s first and world’s largest business angel network with close to 500 members across the world. IAN Fund is a uniquely differentiated seed/early stage fund which aims to transform India’s entrepreneurial landscape. The fund invests in innovative companies in sectors including healthcare and medical devices, VR, AI, software as a service, marketplaces, fin-tech, big data, artificial intelligence, agritech, and hardware. With this, IAN has created the single largest platform for seed and early-stage investing, enabling entrepreneurs to raise from Rs. 25 lakhs to Rs. 50 crores.

 

Contact Information:

Rasik Pansare,

Co-founder and CMO,
Get My Parking
care@getmyparking.com
+17-182-134398

+91-11-408-45100

 

Website: https://www.getmyparking.com

 

Social Media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/getmyparking/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/getmyparking/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/10640338/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/Getmyparking

 

FLASHPARKING SECURES $60 MILLION FROM L CATTERTON’S GROWTH FUND

January 15, 2020

 

 

 

 

FLASHPARKING SECURES $60 MILLION FROM L CATTERTON’S GROWTH FUND

 

Company to Aggressively Scale Cloud-Based Parking System for Cities and Real Estate Owners to Optimize Value and Tap into the Mobility Ecosystem

 

 
Austin, Texas and Greenwich, Conn., (January 15, 2020) — FlashParking, the leader in parking technology, today announced that it has received a $60 million strategic investment from the Growth Fund of L Catterton, the largest and most global consumer-focused private equity firm. The investment will be used to scale FlashParking’s industry-leading extensible, cloud-based parking system that enables 21st-century parking and the evolution of isolated parking assets into connected mobility hubs.

 

Launched in 2011 as the industry’s first cloud-born parking technology, FlashParking is perfecting the parking experience with real-time data visibility and actionable intelligence, including supply data and dynamic pricing, to diversify revenue and deliver a frictionless experience. Today, FlashParking’s mobility hub operating system is the connective layer that transforms parking assets into multi-purpose mobility hubs where parking, transportation, mobility, and logistics intersect within a smart city environment. FlashParking’s operating system empowers real estate owners, parking operators, and cities to tackle complex mobility issues such as congestion, lack of visibility into supply and demand, and fragmented consumer experiences.

 

“FlashParking is a best-in-class parking solutions provider with proven technology and an industry-first cloud-based software solution,” said Michael Farello, Managing Partner, L Catterton Growth Fund. “We are pleased to partner with the FlashParking leadership team to accelerate the Company’s growth and facilitate the delivery of mobility services to consumers and businesses.”

 

The mobility industry is facing a paradigm shift that is moving the conversation toward systems that can support today’s and tomorrow’s mobility services rather than typical “to” and “from” mobility technologies. To get ahead of this evolution, in the coming months FlashParking intends to announce new partnerships with transportation, logistics, and mobility companies that are leveraging its platform.

 

“Over the last nine years, we have built the FlashParking platform with quality and adaptability in mind by making it cloud-based, mobile-first, and future-ready. This unique platform has allowed us to configure an operating system that’s not only the best solution for parking infrastructure today but also a model that’s ready for tomorrow,” said Juan Rodriguez, co-founder of FlashParking. “With this funding from L Catterton, we’ll be able to quickly scale our mobility hub operating system and become the only company that can turn customers’ parking assets into facilities that enable every facet of mobility, including mobile-enabled parking and valet, staging for TNCs, charging for electric vehicles, cleaning and servicing, drone launching and landing, and points for delivering.”

 

FlashParking’s ability to innovate the parking experience has never been more evident than through its partnership with Texas Medical Center (TMC), the world’s largest medical city. In May 2018, TMC chose FlashParking to help modernize its facilities and better respond to the evolving mobility ecosystem. Today, FlashParking’s mobility platform controls 30,000 parking spaces via 230 lanes across 34 facilities while simplifying parking, reducing congestion, improving traffic flow, and enhancing the experience for the more than 10 million patients, visitors, staff, and students who visit TMC annually.

In addition to TMC, FlashParking is delivering at an enterprise scale of more than 6 million parkers per month and processing $1 billion in transactions at more than 1,300 locations worldwide.

 

Rodriguez continued, “L Catterton has an unparalleled track record of building leading brands and rapidly scaling operations, which makes them the ideal partner for us as we grow and expand our business. We look forward to leveraging L Catterton’s expertise and experience scaling multi-sided marketplaces as we work together to build out connected mobile hubs that deliver value to all stakeholders.”

 

L Catterton has significant experience in investing globally in technology-enabled marketplaces and businesses. Current and past investments include ClassPass, Artsy, Vroom, Get Your Guide, and Enjoy.

 

BofA Securities served as financial advisor to FlashParking.

To learn more about FlashParking’s mobility hub vision and operating system, please visit www.flashparking.com.

 

About FlashParking

FlashParking is a leading parking technology company that addresses some of the most complex transportation problems facing urban societies. Founded in 2011 to perfect the parking experience, FlashParking has grown to serve thousands of operations, enterprise portfolios, and smart cities nationwide. Today, the company is enabling traditional parking assets to evolve into next-generation mobility hubs by implementing future-ready hardware and software infrastructure, a powerful business intelligence engine, and a robust partner ecosystem. FlashParking is the best parking solution for today and the only mobility solution for tomorrow. Visit us at www.flashparking.com to learn more. 

 

About L Catterton

With approximately $20 billion of equity capital across seven fund strategies in 17 offices globally, L Catterton is the largest consumer-focused private equity firm in the world. L Catterton’s team of more than 190 investment and operating professionals partners with management teams around the world to implement strategic plans to foster growth, leveraging deep category insight, operational excellence, and a broad thought partnership network. Since 1989, the firm has made over 200 investments in leading consumer brands. L Catterton was formed through the partnership of Catterton, LVMH, and Groupe Arnault. For more information about L Catterton, please visit www.lcatterton.com.

CityLift Parking Secures $22.5 Million Series C Funding With Dundon Capital Partners 

October 07, 2019

 

CityLift Parking Secures $22.5 Million Series C Funding With Dundon Capital Partners 

 

 

OAKLAND, CA  – CityLift Parking (“CityLift”), the leading provider of automated parking lifts in the U.S., announced it has completed its Series C capital round with Dundon Capital Partners LLC (“DCP”). The investment is the largest completed for any U.S. automated parking lift company in the market today. Specific terms of the transaction were not disclosed. CityLift plans to use funds to accelerate its growth and invest in technology innovation to address the rapidly growing automated parking lift industry. John Zutter, Jason Kulas and Jeff Vanderbilt from DCP will be joining CityLift’s Board. 

 

 

“We are delighted to be partnering with DCP,” says Scott Gable, CEO and co-founder of CityLift Parking. “This investment is a vote of confidence in CityLift as the leading player in the future of parking.” 

 This funding builds on an exceptional year for CityLift. CityLift was recognized by Inc. Magazine as the 66th fastest growing company in the United States and the fourth fastest growing company in the construction industry. With its CityLift Puzzle™ design, CityLift became the only company approved for semi-automated parking lift systems in Los Angeles. It completed the largest project in the country, a 235-space project in Oakland, CA, and the first 5-level puzzle lift in the U.S., in Nashville, TN. The company is building the first fully automated system in the Pacific Northwest and the first parking lift system in Salt Lake City. 

“DCP’s experience with rapidly growing companies complements CityLift’s current capabilities and will allow it to expand into new markets and attract new customers” says Mike Ghielmetti, CityLift Board Member and co-founder. 

The funding is also well timed to catch the industry growth wave. Automated parking lifts are rapidly being accepted by cities, developers, architects and builders as a means to use less space, build faster, and reduce cost versus building conventional parking. 

“CityLift has demonstrated itself as a clear market leader in the parking space and fits well with our focus on opportunities with strong leadership, attractive and sustainable margins and secular growth trends. We are excited to partner with Scott and Mike and the team going forward.” says John Zutter, Partner of Dundon Capital Partners. Mr. Zutter will be joining CityLift’s Board as its Chairman. 

About CityLift Parking 

CityLift Parking designs, installs, and services automated parking lifts that save space, reduce the cost of building parking, and reduce construction time. CityLift is headquartered in Oakland, CA, with offices in Los Angeles and Boston. 

About Dundon Capital Partners 

Dallas-based Dundon Capital Partners, LLC is a private investment firm focused on private equity and credit investments across a range of industries. The firm has unique operational experience and managerial capability, combined with its financial backing drives value for its investments and help them achieve their full-growth potential and long-term objectives. DCP holds investments in companies such as Topgolf, Employer Direct Healthcare, OTO Development and a variety of commercial and residential real estate assets. 

Contact 

Raymond Kahue

Director of Marketing

rkahue@cityliftparking.com 

www.cityliftparking.com

ParkWhiz Closes Equity Round To Accelerate Growth

September 07, 2018

 

 

 

 

ParkWhiz Closes Equity Round To Accelerate Growth

 

 

 

NewSpring Leads $20M Round to Expand the Company’s Lead in Last Mile Mobility Services

 

 

 

Chicago, September 7, 2018 – ParkWhiz, the leading transactional platform that delivers scalable, friction-free drive-up and reservation parking services, announced today that it closed $20 million in new funding, as part of its Series D financing. The round was led by NewSpring, a prominent family of private equity funds, with participation from existing investors, including Baird Capital, Jump Capital and Beringea.

 

 

The proceeds will be used to continue the company’s rapid growth of its transactional parking network, expand its footprint into new geographies, and further evolve its connected and autonomous technology to better serve drivers, parking operators, and platform distribution partners.

 

Founded in 2007 and based in Chicago, ParkWhiz provides seamless access to thousands of parking lots and garages in over 190 cities across North America, with hundreds of new facilities joining the network every month. The company uniquely embeds its services directly into the user journeys of more than 300 distribution partners through the ParkWhiz Platform.

 

Expanding rapidly, the ParkWhiz Platform provides over 40 million consumers with parking reservations and friction-free, drive-up access in garages and lots through sports teams and venues, events, travel providers, airlines, hotels, automotive OEMs, and navigation systems. Partners can offer friction-free, transactional parking as a value-added service provided directly through their own apps, websites, and emails, operated via text, voice command, or embedded right into the vehicle.

 

Drivers can also find, book, and pay for parking via the company’s top-rated ParkWhiz and BestParking mobile apps and websites.

 

“Off-street parking is a large, growing market internationally and we are proud to be a leader in the space,” said Yona Shtern, CEO of ParkWhiz. “The rapid adoption of connected and autonomous mobility services coupled with our complementary business models creates an extremely attractive market opportunity for us to expand into and foster new partnerships with consumer brands, parking operators, and asset owners. We’re thrilled to join forces with the NewSpring team as we enter this exciting phase of expansion.”

 

“ParkWhiz deploys an innovative approach to a frictionless parking experience, having already accomplished impressive growth in its market,” commented Glenn Rieger, NewSpring General Partner.  “With strong brand recognition, both among consumers and Platform partners, and an accessible, efficient technology, we believe ParkWhiz is ideally-positioned for continued growth and scale.  NewSpring is thrilled to partner with Yona and the rest of the ParkWhiz management team.”

 

Along with its investment, NewSpring’s Glenn Rieger will join the ParkWhiz Board of Directors.

www.parkwhiz.com

 

Passport Raises $8 Million Series B Funding to Accelerate Growth

May 04, 2016

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Passport Raises $8 Million Series B Funding to Accelerate Growth

 

 

May 3, 2016- Charlotte, NC – Passport, North America’s leading mobile technology company in parking, transportation and transit management, today announced that it closed an $8 million Series B round led by MK Capital with participation from existing investors Grotech Ventures and Relevance Capital. This investment brings Passport’s total funding to $17 million.

 

 

“We have been following this space closely over the last few years and have conducted extensive diligence. The team at Passport has done a remarkable job of supporting an impressive list of clients, bringing in the best and the brightest, producing a cutting edge platform, expanding revenue growth, and building strong industry partnerships. Passport is the clear market leader on many fronts and will continue to push the industry forward,” said Bret Maxwell, Managing General Partner at MK Capital.

 

Passport provides an enterprise software platform for parking and transportation customers centered around mobile payments, enforcement, and permits. Passport supports the operational needs of industry professionals by providing real-time insights not attainable through existing infrastructure. Passport is currently partnered with a growing list of over 250 clients, helping them support over 2 million community users.

 

“We are thrilled to add Bret Maxwell to our investment team and receive this new round of funding. The additional capital will enable us to accelerate our company’s growth and expand our team to support our product roadmap and serve our clients’ needs. Our enterprise platform is striking a chord with the market as they look to bring technology into their operations and drive efficiency,” said Bob Youakim, CEO at Passport. “Knowing that our platform helps relieve pressure points from their day-to-day operations to free up their time is rewarding,” said Youakim.

 

The investment will help scale Passport’s operations and expand into new domestic and international markets. “Passport has grown substantially since its initial round of funding. It’s not often that companies at this stage reach positive cash flow in such a short period of time and Passport is set to get there this year. This new infusion of capital will allow Passport to gain additional market share and provide innovative solutions to real-world problems faced by community stakeholders,” said Don Rainey, General Partner, Grotech Ventures.

 

Passport has deployed its software solutions in large metro cities such as Chicago, Toronto, Boston, Detroit, Cincinnati, Sacramento, and Salt Lake City, as well as scores of smaller communities. While using Passport’s platform, clients are able to manage every aspect of their parking operation.  In addition, end-users receive highly rated mobile applications to pay for parking sessions and transit tickets.

 

“Our enterprise platform, our team, and the overall market make this a great time to accelerate our growth plans. We look forward to continuing to serve our current and future clients,” Youakim said.

 

About Passport

 

Passport is North America’s leading mobile technology company specializing in enterprise business applications and payments for the public and private sector. Passport’s product lines–parking payments, transit payments, enforcement and permit management–collectively serve to deliver dynamic tools for agencies to better connect with their communities. Its services have been adopted by over 20 of the top 50 cities in North America and over 2,000 locations including Chicago, Toronto, Boston, and Portland. Passport’s mission is to reduce operational complexity and deliver intelligent data to improve decision making for its clients.

 

Headquartered in Charlotte, NC, Passport is backed by a highly respected group of investors, including Grotech Ventures, Relevance Capital, and MK Capital. For more information, please visit www.passportinc.com.

 

About MK Capital

 

MK Capital (www.mkcapital.com) invests in early and growth-stage companies in the software and digital media industries. The firm’s partners, who average over fifteen years of venture capital experience, partner with entrepreneurial management teams to build leading companies in emerging markets.

MK Capital has deep domain expertise in the marketing, education, and cloud infrastructure industries. MK Capital manages over $250 million in capital and is actively seeking new investment opportunities.

 

About Grotech Ventures

 

Founded in 1984, Grotech Ventures (www.grotech.com) is a leading early investor in high-potential technology companies. With more than $1.3B under management, Grotech seeks innovative, early-stage IT companies and continues to invest and add value throughout the growth of its portfolio companies. The firm has a strong combination of industry relationships and deep domain and operational expertise to accelerate growth. Grotech supports early-stage companies through investments starting at $500,000. General partners include Frank Adams, Chuck Cullen, Lawson DeVries, Steve Fredrick, Don Rainey and Joe Zell. The firm has offices in Virginia, Maryland, and Colorado.

 

About Relevance Capital

 

Relevance Capital (www.relevancecapital.com) is an early-stage venture firm that focuses on compelling business ideas that have the commercial relevance to make  attractive investment opportunities. Relevance works with passionate entrepreneurs and investment partners to achieve success by forging strategies that impact existing sectors and create exciting new markets. Relevance seeks early stage opportunities within three industry silos: Cloud-Based Software, Healthcare Enablement and Advanced Technologies. Relevance locations include Nashville and Philadelphia. Relevance is led CEO Fran Marcum and Managing Partner Cameron Newton.