OAKBROOK TERRACE, IL – February 4, 2020 – Prairie Capital Advisors, Inc. (“Prairie”), a leading middle-market investment bank, acted as financial advisor to metroConnections, Inc. in the sale of the company to an employee stock ownership plan.
Founded in 1984, metroConnections provides complete conference, event, stage production and transportation services for meeting and event planners nationwide. The company operates from its headquarters in Minneapolis, Minnesota and produces thousands of programs per year. The metroConnections team uses its expertise and resources to specialize in the design and implementation of themed events, stage productions, transportation, tours and conference program logistics and meetings.
Prairie worked closely with the management team and sellers, providing advisory expertise and managing the preparatory, due diligence and negotiation phases of the transaction as well as structuring the financing for the transaction. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. “Prairie Capital Advisors was an excellent choice for metroConnections in our ESOP transition,” said Mike Graves, Chief Operating Officer of metroConnections. “We knew it would be an involved deal but were unaware of the various structural complexities and legal components required. The expertise and guidance of the Prairie team made it easy to navigate which gave us confidence that our best interests were being served. We couldn’t have pulled it off without them.”
“After meeting with the ownership group of metroConnections, it became clear that preserving the legacy, culture and independence of the company were important as they explored their ownership alternatives,” commented David Diehl, CEO of Prairie. “We are confident that the ESOP was the ideal strategy for metroConnections,” continued Diehl. Franco Silva, Director at Prairie added, “It was a pleasure working with the metroConnections team throughout the entire transaction process. The company has all of the essential characteristics to be a very successful ESOP company in the future.”
About Prairie Capital Advisors
Prairie offers investment banking, ESOP advisory and valuation services to support the growth and ownership transition strategies of middle-market companies. Headquartered in Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois, the company is a leading advisor to closely-held companies nationwide. Prairie was named the 2019 USA Valuations & Opinions Firm of the Year by M&A Atlas. For more information, visit www.prairiecap.com.
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Media Contact
Wendy Gugora, Director of Marketing
Prairie Capital Advisors, Inc.
630.413.5574
wgugora@prairiecap.com
