TAMPA, Fla. and LOS ANGELES – April 7, 2020 – Marlin Equity Partners (“Marlin”) is pleased to announce the completion of its acquisition of AVI-SPL, a leading digital workplace collaboration solutions provider, and subsequent merger with Whitlock, an existing portfolio company of Marlin. The two leading digital workplace services providers will combine under AVI-SPL to offer organizations around the globe best-in-class, end-to-end technology management and support solutions. H.I.G. Capital (“H.I.G.”) has partnered with Marlin in the transaction and will hold a minority stake in the combined company.
Alex Beregovsky, a managing director at Marlin, said, “The digital workplace services industry has an incredible amount of untapped potential. The combined company significantly benefits from deeper resources and enhanced local presence that will fuel communication and collaboration, while offering a world-class experience for remote working, distance learning, meeting rooms, and more. We look forward to bringing together two highly synergistic industry leaders to help them fully reach their potential and accelerate the combined company’s growth.”
The merger will expand AVI-SPL’s breadth of solutions for customers around the world. Legacy Whitlock customers will now have access to AVI-SPL’s 24/7 Global Services Operation Centers, as well as remote management and monitoring capabilities provided by AVI-SPL Symphony, the company’s proprietary offering. The combination will also form the industry’s most certified team of engineers and technicians that are uniquely capable of offering organizations valuable insight and expertise for their vital technology deployments.
“This is an incredibly exciting new chapter for our company, and we are thrilled to be partnering with Marlin as we capitalize on this huge opportunity for, not only our growth and value creation, but our customers’ as well,” said John Zettel, CEO of AVI-SPL. “AVI-SPL and Whitlock have always shared a mutual admiration and respect for one another due to our similar passion for innovation, cultural alignment and commitment to providing world-class customer experiences. Combining these strengths along with Marlin and H.I.G.’s commitment to supporting and empowering growth will ensure we continue to deliver the very best experience for our customers undergoing digital transformations.”
Financial details of the transaction have not been disclosed.
About Marlin Equity Partners
Marlin Equity Partners is a global investment firm with over $6.7 billion of capital under management. The firm is focused on providing corporate parents, shareholders and other stakeholders with tailored solutions that meet their business and liquidity needs. Marlin invests in businesses across multiple industries where its capital base, industry relationships and extensive network of operational resources significantly strengthen a company’s outlook and enhance value. Since its inception, Marlin, through its group of funds and related companies, has successfully completed over 160 acquisitions. The firm is headquartered in Los Angeles, California with an additional office in London. For more information, please visit www.marlinequity.com.
About AVI-SPL
AVI-SPL is a digital workplace services provider that works with organizations globally to improve team collaboration and unlock new business value. The largest provider of collaboration technology solutions, which includes its award-winning managed services, AVI-SPL’s highly-trained team works hand-in-hand with organizations worldwide – including over 80% of Fortune 100 companies – to strategize, design, deploy, manage and support AV and UC solutions that are simple-to-use, scalable, serviceable, and measurable to ensure business objectives are achieved. For more information, please visit www.AVISPL.com
About Whitlock
Whitlock is a provider of audiovisual (AV) and video collaboration (VC) solutions. The company’s primary services include strategic planning, roadmap consulting, enterprise management, workplace integration and managed support. Additional expertise includes “as a service” (aaS) opportunities as well as integrated design and deployment of furniture, surroundings, technologies and tools through their partnership with Herman Miller. Whitlock teams serve customers across a wide variety of industries, including the financial, high-tech, energy, healthcare, higher education, legal and federal government sectors. Whitlock delivers its solutions through the Global Presence Alliance, a global network of 30 leading AV and VC companies that span six continents and employ thousands of AV and VC professionals. Founded in 1956, Whitlock is headquartered in Richmond, VA with additional offices across the U.S.