CLEVELAND, Nov. 01, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Blue Point Capital Partners announced today that it has sold its interest in Trademark Games Holdings, LLC to Bertram Capital. Blue Point invested in Trademark from its 2006 vintage fund, Blue Point Capital Partners II – a $400 million lower middle-market buyout fund. Sale terms were not disclosed.
Trademark, founded in 1999 and headquartered in Lorain, OH, is a leading virtual manufacturer, fulfiller and wholesale distributor of branded and licensed product categories, currently serving 32 of the top 100 U.S. e-commerce retailers. In a decade where e‐commerce has grown at a double‐digit pace, Trademark’s drop-ship, direct to consumer fulfillment and distribution capabilities position the Company as an early adopter and clear market leader.
“During our three-year partnership, Trademark demonstrated exceptional top‐line and margin growth, nearly doubling its EBITDA. The ability to bring Blue Point’s China, strategic and value-add planning resources to work alongside this entrepreneurial, local company was key to Blue Point’s investment strategy,” said Sean Ward, a Partner with Blue Point. “We were privileged to support this outstanding team as they continued the Company’s trend as an industry innovator and leader. We are proud of Trademark’s growth and performance, and, of course, pleased with the outcome of our investment.”
Under Blue Point’s ownership, Trademark successfully established an Asia-based office to increase its speed to market time and quality control. Concurrently, this established player in the highly fragmented e-commerce marketplace upgraded to a market-standard IT platform and recreated its inventory management and product development processes, affording the Company with increased operational leverage to continue to scale with the growing e-commerce industry.
“Blue Point was essential to implementing improvements and fostering growth over the last three years, and we benefited greatly from the domestic and international opportunities achieved through our partnership,” said Chief Executive Officer of Trademark, Dan Sustar. “We are grateful for the industry resources and value drivers made available to us and look forward to continuing this momentum with Bertram Capital.”
BB&T Capital Markets served as the exclusive financial advisor to Trademark.
Blue Point Capital Partners is a private equity firm managing over $800 million in committed capital. With offices in Cleveland, Charlotte, Seattle and Shanghai, Blue Point’s geographical footprint allows it to establish relationships with local and regional entrepreneurs and advisors, while providing the resources of an international firm. The Blue Point group has a 26-year track record of partnering with companies in the lower middle market to facilitate growth and transformative change. It is one of only a few middle market private equity firms with a presence in both the United States and China, which provides a distinct advantage for its portfolio companies. Blue Point typically invests in manufacturing, distribution and service businesses generating between $20 million and $200 million in revenue.