O2 Investment Partners announces sale of portfolio company Mantis Innovation Group to Gemspring Capital
December 2021
BLOOMFIELD HILLS, Mich.,
O2 Investment Partners (“O2” or the “Firm”) is pleased to announce the recent sale of its portfolio company, Mantis Innovation Group (“Mantis” or the “Company”) to Gemspring Capital (“Gemspring”).
Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Mantis provides solutions to deliver better building performance and improved energy efficiency for its customers. The company relies on proprietary software tools to offer a full suite of services, including: energy procurement and demand management; solar, roofing, building envelope and pavement assessment and maintenance; and LED lighting, HVAC/mechanical and building automation systems design and implementation.
Since O2’s initial investment in May 2018, O2 and management have created significant value through organic and inorganic growth initiatives, with a consistent focus on developing and utilizing best-in-class software-enabled solutions. Mantis completed and integrated four add-on acquisitions, enhancing and diversifying the Company’s service offerings, customer base, and geographic reach.
“We are incredibly proud and thankful for all of the Mantis team’s hard work, dedication, and innovation made since 2018. Together, we created an industry leader with a truly differentiated service offering, supported by the Company’s collaborative mentality and strong culture. We are grateful to have had the opportunity to partner with the Mantis team and believe they are in good hands with Gemspring to take the business to the next level,” said Joe Vallee, a Partner with O2.
“O2 has been a great partner in helping Mantis grow to the level we are today. From the first day of our partnership, they believed in our strategic vision and philosophy of growth. In particular, Joe Vallee, a Partner with O2, was unwavering in his pursuit to assist Mantis in achieving success,” said Dan Marzuola, CEO of Mantis. “We are also excited about our next chapter in partnership with Gemspring and believe their operational expertise, network of advisors, and M&A support will help us strengthen our platform and drive transformational growth.”
Don Gerne, Managing Director at Gemspring, added, “We see building owners seeking to shift from reactive to preventative and predictive asset management, as well as a strong desire to reduce energy consumption. Mantis’ broad suite of value-added services and tech-enabled solutions position the Company very well to support these building owners as the go-to provider of managed facility and energy services. We are delighted to partner with the Mantis team to build on their successes to date and accelerate the Company’s growth.”
Houlihan Lokey served as the exclusive financial advisor to O2 and Mantis Innovation Group. Honigman provided legal counsel to O2 Investment Partners, and Walker Eisenbraun, LLC provided legal counsel to Mantis Innovation Group’s management.
About Mantis:
Mantis Innovation is a tech-enabled service provider that works with customers to deliver better building performance and improved energy efficiency. The company offers a full suite of services, including: energy procurement and demand management; solar, roofing, building envelope, and pavement, design, assessment and maintenance; and LED lighting, HVAC/mechanical and building automation systems implementation. Mantis is headquartered in Houston, Texas, with 17 locations across the United States from Massachusetts to Washington. For more information, visit www.mantisinnovation.com.
About O2 Investment Partners:
O2 Investment Partners is a Midwestern based private equity firm that seeks to acquire majority interests in lower middle market B2B services, technology, and select industrial companies. The firm invests in businesses with earnings growth potential and a clear path to the creation of shareholder value. O2 invests with a view toward partnering with management to build and grow the business and take it to its next stage of development. This requires not only a clear vision and strategic plan to create shareholder value, but a close partnership and alignment of interest with management. For more information, visit www.o2investment.com.
About Gemspring Capital:
Gemspring Capital, a Westport, Connecticut-based private equity firm with $1.5 billion of capital under management, provides flexible capital solutions to lower middle market companies. Gemspring partners with talented management teams and takes a partnership approach to helping drive revenue growth and value creation. Target companies have up to $500 million in revenue and are in the aerospace & defense, business services, consumer services, financial and insurance services, healthcare services, industrial services, software and tech-enabled services, or specialty manufacturing sectors. For more information, visit www.gemspring.com.
Contact:
Joe Vallee
O2 Investment Partners, LLC