Seacoast Capital ("Seacoast"), a lower middle market non-control growth capital investor, announced today the exit of its investment in East Coast Warehouse & Distribution ("ECW" or the "Company") through the Company's recapitalization by a private investment firm. Seacoast originally invested $21 million of subordinated debt and preferred equity in ECW in June 2018 to support a balance sheet recapitalization of the Company alongside of its management team. Everside Capital Partners, a New York-based asset management firm, co-invested in the original transaction with Seacoast.
ECW, headquartered in Elizabeth, New Jersey, provides container drayage, ambient and temperature-controlled warehousing, local and regional trucking, national freight brokerage and customs exam services, offering shippers a fully integrated supply chain solution. The Company operates 72 million cubic feet of temperature-controlled and ambient warehouse space at the Ports of New York/New Jersey, Philadelphia, Baltimore and Savannah.
"Our investment in ECW was a perfect case study for Seacoast's core mandate of backing incumbent management teams for discrete growth opportunities," Seacoast Principal Jamie Donelan commented, "although rarely do we encounter a group that executes on its stated growth strategy with surgical precision in the way that the ECW team did – a real testament to the strength of the Company's leadership and the world-class organization they have built".
ECW CEO Jamie Overley added, "In Seacoast we found a patient partner that both understood our long-term plan to become the nationwide leader in port-based end-to-end 3PL services and believed in our ability to make it happen," further noting "with their support we were able to broaden our presence in the Port of New York and New Jersey as well as expedite the expansion of our operations into Baltimore and Savannah and strategically position the Company for the next phase of our growth".
