Hilco Global’s commercial industrial team acquired all of the assets of Sutton Leasing, a fleet leasing company based in Sterling Heights, MI, in a multi-million-dollar transaction that closed on May 7.
The Hilco Commercial Industrial team plans to operate the company, managing the fleet lease portfolio, which consists of more than 7,000 cars, trucks and other transportation equipment. The new company will be called H19 Sutton Leasing and will be added to the H19 group of companies, which includes Indianapolis-based H19 Capital, which specializes in truck leasing and was acquired by Hilco in 2020. H19 Sutton Leasing will have additional offices in Northbrook, IL, and Vandalia, OH, while maintaining the headquarter operation in Michigan.
Huron Consulting Services served as financial advisor and its registered broker dealer affiliate served as investment banker for this transaction.
“We are uniquely positioned for the acquisition of Sutton Leasing due to the success we’ve had with last year’s purchase of H19 Capital, as there are considerable operational and administrative synergies between Hilco’s H19 truck leasing operation and assets and the acquisition of automobile-focused Sutton Leasing,” Steven Tanzi, president of Hilco Performance Solutions, said. “These synergies provide knowledge and services that will help dramatically improve the company’s financial performance going forward.”
The transaction was structured using a combination of debt and equity. Hilco Commercial Industrial aligned with Wells Fargo to close the transaction and financial details have not been disclosed.
“Wells Fargo has been an outstanding bank, working collaboratively to help us structure the deal and close very quickly and efficiently,” Tanzi said.
“It was a pleasure to work with the innovative Hilco Global management team for this important financing,” Lindsay Gray, managing director of Wells Fargo Capital Finance, said. “We were able to structure a flexible financing solution and execute a seamless, quick process to close within 15 days to meet the customers’ demands. It was a great collaboration between all parties.”
H19 Sutton Leasing plans to retain most of the existing staff at this time. The new entity will be called H19 Sutton Leasing and will be led by Tanzi, who will serve as CEO. In addition, David Dye, managing director of Hilco Performance Solutions, will serve as CFO; Bryan Courcier, senior vice president of Hilco Valuation Services, will serve as chief operating officer; and Buddy Beaman, executive vice president of Hilco Receivables, will serve as chief commercial officer.
