About Us
Gates Group Advisors (GGA), is a Cleveland-based consulting firm that advises closely held, middle market companies throughout North America. The principals, Mike de Windt and Walter Stuelpe, are successful private equity investors who can benefit owners who do not need a financial partner but recognize the value that a private equity-based background can bring to their business. GGA works with business owners to create value by executing growth plans through the application of proven private equity-based strategies. GGA is neither an investment bank nor a McKinsey-like strategic consulting firm but rather serves in an advisory capacity strictly in the pursuit of the business owner’s goals and objectives. GGA’s approach and methods are emphatically not transactional. To the contrary, the model is rooted in a long-term relationship with the business owner over a period of years.
Additional elements of GGA’s unique value proposition include:
Provides business owners with the expertise of a seasoned private equity professional without having to sell an equity interest in their business to obtain it;
Objective advice grounded in real world experience to assist business owners in developing and implementing a comprehensive strategic growth plan to optimize value creation;
A customized, comprehensive approach focused on increasing company value that leads to multiple succession options if desired by the business owner;
Experienced in all types of transactions: acquisitions, joint ventures, aggregation strategies, equity and debt financings and recapitalizations; and,
A fee structure that fully aligns client and advisor based on meeting or exceeding agreed upon set of performance objectives.
GGA works with business owners and their management teams to define, plan and execute strategies that lead to scalability and sustainable performance. The GGA advisory model is truly unique and can add immeasurable value regardless whether the business owner’s plan is to grow for succession and/or to monetize.
Services
All of our clients are unique with their own set of opportunities and challenges. However, based on our experience all businesses face significant decisions that have lasting consequences for long-term, multi-generational success:
Create a Road Map for Growth
Implementation of a formalized strategic planning process
Deliver Capital Resources
Access to a network of debt and equity providers to support existing and future business requirements
Build the Team
Organizational design, talent acquisition, development and retention
Transaction Execution
Acquisitions and financings benefit from internal leadership, experience and expertise
Good Governance
Helping implement robust governance practices (including the potential formation of an independent board) to set expectations and accountability
Succession Planning and Shareholder Value Realization
Critical elements in perpetuating the business under family control require extensive planning and timely execution
Consistent with the private equity investment model, engagements are customarily multi-year. Each situation is different, and each engagement is specifically tailored to meet client needs and objectives. Compensation is designed to facilitate interaction and align interests of Gates Group Advisors with the client.
Representative Experience
Commercial Millwork Company
$10M regional commercial millwork business serving the general contractors and architectural markets
Advised client on the acquisition of the second-generation, family-owned business
Coordinated all facets of the transaction including valuation, negotiation of letter of intent, financing, diligence and negotiation of definitive documentation
Successfully closed the acquisition and serve on the Advisory Board
Executive Search and Staffing Company
$30M national retained search and healthcare staffing business
Advised client on the merger with and creation of new platform company
Coordinated all facets of the transaction including sell-side and merger valuation, negotiation of letter of intent, financing, diligence and negotiation of definitive documentation
Continue to informally advise client of post-closing integration and operational execution
Recovery & Restoration Company
$50M national recovery & restoration business
Advised and supported execution of growth and financing strategy
Advised and supported execution of a scalable Shared Services platform
Advised and supported revamp of financial reporting and development of KPIs
Parking and Transportation Services Company
$200M manager of parking & transportation services throughout North America
Designed and implemented five-year strategic plan
Advised and supported complete overhaul of back-office services
Executed on transactions that yielded $250M+ of incremental enterprise value or 5x going-in EV
Fleet Management Company
$75M provider of customized fleet management solutions to automotive OEMs
Supported strategic transition from commodity-based legacy business to higher-value add revenue streams
Completed $50M recapitalization to consolidate ownership from 5 to 1 control shareholder
Intermodal Transportation Services Company
$50M technology products and services provider to Class 1 railroads
Assisted with the development of strategic plan to drive recurring revenue growth and diversification of services offering and customer markets
Negotiated and completed a $64M recapitalization to provide founder liquidity and secure institutional investment
Hospitality Valet and Staffing Company
Negotiated and completed a $15M recapitalization to provide founder liquidity and refinance a recent acquisition
Assisted with organizational design to expand staffing service within the hospitality sector and into new markets such as healthcare
Negotiated and completed a $40M recapitalization to provide shareholder liquidity and secure institutional investment
Principal Biographies
Mike de Windt. Mr. de Windt was a Founder & CEO of Gates Group Capital Partners (GGCP) a Cleveland-based private equity firm. Mr. de Windt brings considerable background in M&A, finance, strategy development and operational improvement. Founded in 2002 with over $300 million of capital under management, GGCP made investments in middle market businesses within the transportation industry in North America. Prior to co-founding GGCP, Mike was the Founder and President of Grand River Industries, a private investment firm with a focus on industrial middle market investments. Prior to Grand River, Mike was on the corporate development staff at NACCO Industries (NYSE:NC) a diversified holding company with interests in materials handling, consumer products and coal mining.
Walter Stuelpe. Mr. Stuelpe was a Founder & Chairman of Gates Group Capital Partners a Cleveland-based private equity firm. Prior to co-founding GGCP, Mr. Stuelpe was the CEO of APCOA, Inc., and President of APCOA/Standard Parking, Inc., a leading parking management company. Mr. Stuelpe began his career with ITT Service Industries and has extensive experience in service-related businesses. Throughout his career, Mr. Stuelpe has initiated and completed the friendly acquisition of more than 20 companies, establishing a track record as a proven acquirer of businesses. A past president of the National Parking Association, he has also been awarded the Excellence in Management Medal by Case Western Reserve University and the ESPRIT Award for Excellence by Booz Allen & Hamilton.
Contact
Gates Group Advisors, LLC
17740 Bryce Ct.
Cleveland, OH 44023
(216) 533-7637