Shields & Company (“Shields”) is pleased to announce it advised International Filtration Services (“IFS” or the “Company”) in its recapitalization with Goldner Hawn LP (“Goldner Hawn”). Founded in 2022 and headquartered in Belleville, Michigan, IFS is a founder-owned, value-added distributor of filtration products and provider of high-touch filtration services to customers across North America.
“IFS, in its current and prior forms, has been part of my life and family for over 30 years. When we spun out of MANN+HUMMEL, we did it to preserve the jobs for our employees and their families. When we decided that we needed to find a partner to help us continue to grow the business, we interviewed a handful of investment banks. Chris and the Shields team stood out from our very first meeting. The Shields team was candid with us, protected our confidentiality, and listened to our needs, which resulted in a process that led us to Goldner Hawn, a partner who respects our people and legacy while providing us with the resources we need to grow. The Shields team became part of the IFS family, and I couldn’t have asked for better advisors,” said Bob Mullins, shareholder and President of IFS.
Erik Savalox, CEO of IFS, added: “Shields delivered exactly what we wanted in an advisor: deep M&A expertise, hands-on involvement by the senior team, and communication you can rely on. They were disciplined and put structured touchpoints in place to ensure our team wasn’t the bottleneck and that we hit our timeline. That combination made a complex process run smoothly, and it's set IFS up well as we begin the next phase of growth with Goldner Hawn.”
“We are excited to partner with the IFS team and support the Company’s next phase of growth,” said Chad Cornell, Partner at Goldner Hawn. “We appreciate the values and vision of our new partners and are excited about the future of the Company. IFS has built an impressive platform in the filtration industry, and we look forward to working alongside management to expand its capabilities, scale operations, and continue delivering exceptional value to customers.”
"It was a privilege to represent the Mullins family and the IFS team. They built a business known for superior technical capabilities supported by leading customer service, and that reputation drew strong interest from a range of buyers. Goldner Hawn is an excellent partner that shares the team’s commitment to employees and customers, and we're proud to have helped bring the two together,” said Chris Nicholas, Managing Partner with Shields & Company.
“We are truly honored by the trust placed in us by Bob, Erik, and the entire IFS team to assist them during this key milestone in the Company’s history. Through its alliance with a proven partner in Goldner Hawn, IFS should experience accelerating growth, both organically and through acquisition, and we look forward to supporting IFS and Goldner Hawn however we can in the years to come,” said Darwin Olympia, Managing Director with Shields & Company.
Chris Nicholas, Darwin Olympia, Tim Weeks, and Charlie Donahue from Shields & Company served as the exclusive financial advisor to IFS. Greg O’Shaughnessy, Amy O’Keefe, Anthony Bova, and Eli Wendell from Nixon Peabody LLP served as IFS’s legal advisor. Winston Taylor served as legal advisor to Goldner Hawn.
Shields & Company acted as financial advisor to IFS in the above transaction.