Funds Facilitate Purchase of Key Assets of Coach America Holdings
Boston—September 25, 2012—Crystal Financial LLC, an independent commercial finance company, announced today it has provided a $33 million loan facility to support the acquisition of certain assets and operations of Coach America Holdings, Inc. (Coach America) by Transportation Management Services (TMS). Headquartered in Sandy Springs, Maryland, TMS is a leading transportation management firm that provides transportation logistics and technology solutions for complex events in the commercial and government sectors.
The loan facility, which includes a $23 million term loan and a $10 million revolver, will be used to purchase Coach America’s intra-city units, which provide contract transportation work for events, tours and cruise ships. With this acquisition, TMS becomes the third largest charter bus company in the United States.
“The acquisition of the intra-city units of Coach America provides TMS the opportunity to accelerate plans to increase its market position as a large-scale contract and charter bus operator,” commented Andrew Hettinger, Managing Director with Crystal Financial. “In addition, TMS has regularly subcontracted with Coach America over the past several years, so the management team was very familiar with the company’s operations.
“This was a highly structured transaction requiring streamlined diligence and negotiation, continued Hettinger. We were happy to see the transaction come together so successfully and to play a role in the continued success of TMS.”
“There are very few financial partners who could have navigated this transaction with us so well,” noted Frank Sherman, Chairman and CEO. “This acquisition will enable us to deliver on our plans to expand our presence in key transportation markets and grow our overall service offering. The Crystal team was flexible and creative throughout the expedited diligence and closing process.”
The acquired assets and operations from Coach America will provide TMS with further market expansion in Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego, Phoenix, Las Vegas, Denver, Houston, Miami, West Palm Beach, Fla., Orlando, Fla., Jacksonville, Fla., Charlotte, N.C., Winston-Salem, N.C., Raleigh-Durham, N.C., and Jacksonville, N.C.
Houlihan Lokey acted as exclusive financial advisor and sole placement agent to TMS.
About Crystal Financial
Crystal Financialis an independent commercial finance company that provides senior and junior secured loans for both asset-based and cash flow financings (minimum of $10 million in fundings) to middle-market companies. Its team of experienced, responsive professionals have underwritten, closed and managed more than $20 billion in secured debt commitments across a wide range of industries. For more information and media contacts, please visit www.crystalfinco.com.
About Transportation Management Services, (TMS)
Since 1995, Transportation Management Services, Inc. (“TMS”) has assisted more than 1,000 clients in successfully transporting more than 34 million passengers across the United States and around the world. TMS remains a company that is dedicated to providing the highest level of service for its clients. TMS has expertise in planning for and managing event transportation with unique insight into related functional areas such as project planning, detailed operational planning and variable demand. A key strength of TMS is to remain flexible in the face of changing demands while maintaining high quality customer service. Through its Horizon Coach Lines and Cabana Coaches subsidiaries, TMS provides bus charters, local sightseeing tours, convention shuttles and contract services in select markets throughout North America, including gateway locations in Seattle, Vancouver, Victoria, Los Angeles, Houston, Washington, DC, and Miami.