BREA, Calif. — CoolSys™ was acquired by a fund managed by the private equity group of Ares Management Corp.  CoolSys will continue to operate under its current executive team, which will collectively maintain a significant equity investment in the company.  Financial terms of the private transaction were not disclosed.

“This is a major milestone for CoolSys,” said Adam Coffey, CEO of CoolSys.  “We are grateful to our former private equity partner, Audax Group, for supporting the execution of our growth strategies during the past three years.  Now, with Ares’ additional support and resources, we can pursue a more aggressive acquisition and expansion strategy while we continue to deliver best-in-class solutions for our customers’ mission–critical refrigeration and HVAC systems throughout North America.” 

Over the past three years, CoolSys has undergone transformative growth with eight acquisitions to expand its presence and reinforce its service capabilities in key geographic markets across the U.S., earning the company recognition as one of the top 10 fastest-growing private companies in Orange County by the Orange County Business Journal.  The company plans to continue its growth organically, as well as through strategic acquisitions, following its partnership with Ares.  To accommodate its growing operations and staff, CoolSys expanded into a 27,000-square-foot headquarters in Brea.  The company currently employs a team of more than 2,000 employees nationwide and is in active discussions with several potential acquisition targets. 

“CoolSys is the recognized leader in the fragmented refrigeration and HVAC services market,” said Matt Cwiertnia, partner and co-head of North America Private Equity of Ares Management. “We are impressed by its rapid growth, blue-chip customer portfolio, expanding set of customer solutions, highly capable leadership team, and strong employee-centric culture. We look forward to partnering with CEO Adam Coffey and the entire CoolSys management team to accelerate growth both organically and through add-on acquisitions.”

Publication date: 3/29/2019

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