DETROIT—Officials at the Detroit private equity firm Huron Capital, announced the sale of the firm’s used car auction and remarketing platform XLerate Group to Brightstar Capital Partners, a New York City-based private equity firm. Terms were no tdisclosed.
Huron Capital formed XLerate in 2014 to pursue a buy-and-build strategy in the used car auction industry. XLerate has grown over the past seven years through both add-on acquisitions and organic growth into a larger, more technologically advanced group of national automotive auction sites and is poised for additional growth.
“We had a clear vision when we established XLerate Group with Huron Capital and, together, have achieved many of those goals to establish XLerate as a leader in the used vehicle remarketing industry,” said Cam Hitchcock, CEO of XLerate. “We see enormous potential for this business and the sector as a whole and are confident we can continue our momentum in the market with Brightstar’s additional support as we transition to a new ownership structure. Our aim will be to solidify XLerate’s leading positions in the markets we serve and continue to expand in this industry through strategic investments in technology and other avenues for growth.”
Based in Carmel, Ind., XLerate is a full-service used-car auction services provider that facilitates the wholesale remarketing of used vehicles for B2B customers.
“We are honored to have had the opportunity to work with Cam and the XLerate team over the past seven years and look forward to our continued partnership,” said Peter Mogk, senior partner at Huron Capital. “Our investment strategy with XLerate delivered great value for our investors and built a strong value proposition for key stakeholders, customers and employees alike. We wish them well in the next chapter of their growth under new ownership.”
Under Huron Capital’s ExecFactor investment model, XLerate completed 11 add-on acquisitions. Today, XLerate has a nationwide presence with 17 auction sites across 12 states, including California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, Indiana, Louisiana, and Wisconsin.
Founded in Detroit in 1999, Huron Capital is an operationally focused private equity platform with a long history of growing lower middle-market companies through its proprietary ExecFactor buy-and-build investment model. An early pioneer of the buy-and-build approach, Huron Capital has successfully established six private equity funds aggregating nearly $2 billion in committed capital and invested in over 235 companies, and its portfolio companies have employed over 11,000 people throughout North America. The Huron Capital buy-and-build investment model includes equity recapitalizations, family succession transactions, market-entry strategies, corporate carve-outs, and management buyouts of companies having revenues up to $200 million. For more information, please visit: www.huroncapital.com.
More about XLerate at https://www.xlerategroup.com.