Southfield Capital, a premier lower middle market private equity firm, announced today that Franchise FastLane, a leading franchise sales organization for emerging franchisors has acquired Raintree Franchise Growth, a firm specializing in full-service brand development and marketing services for franchisors. Raintree’s owners will remain actively involved in the business post-close and Brent Dowling will serve as Chief Marketing Officer for the combined entity.
“In the effort to apply a comprehensive approach to the lifecycle of emerging franchise brands, this acquisition is an opportunity to help even more franchisors grow,” said Carey Gille, CEO of Franchise FastLane. “We’ve always had deep respect for the Raintree team. Now that we’re aligned, we will be in a position to deliver even more for both our brand and consultant partners through an unmatched messaging, marketing, and branding experience. In combining the strength and expertise found in each of our organizations, we’re looking to provide innovative new services for franchise development and other franchisor-related services.”
Both Franchise FastLane and Raintree rely on lead generation provided by multiple franchise brokerages and consultancies. Franchise FastLane and Raintree intend to enhance and strengthen these valuable relationships by continuing to provide best-in-class branding, messaging and collateral, as well as innovative new technology and marketing solutions.
“With this partnership, two of the biggest names in franchise development have partnered together to bring further value to the franchise industry,” said Brent Dowling, CEO of Raintree. “This is a big move, for not just us and our franchisor partners, but for future and current franchisees leveraging franchising as a pathway to wealth creation and community building.”
Southfield Vice President Josh Sylvan commented, “We are excited to welcome the Raintree team to FastLane and believe it will be a great combination of franchise service expertise. FastLane and Raintree have unique and complementary strengths that will create a powerful platform to grow emerging franchisors and their franchisee communities.”
Troutman Pepper Hamilton Sanders LLP provided legal counsel to FastLane and Southfield Capital.
About Franchise FastLane
Franchise FastLane provides outsourced franchise development services to emerging franchisors. It manages the entire franchisee sales lifecycle from initial lead generation to prospect qualification through to deal closure. FastLane works with franchisors to perfect their discovery process, bring qualified franchisee leads and drive explosive growth. FastLane leverages a rigorous diligence and onboarding process, industry-leading technology platform, and exceptional sales executives to drive successful franchise development for its franchisor clients. FastLane is based in Omaha, NE.
For more information, please visit www.franchisefastlane.com.
About Southfield Capital
Southfield Capital is a private equity firm that invests in high-growth, lower middle market companies in the outsourced business services sector. The firm targets companies with $4 – 15 million in EBITDA and partners with management to scale the business through a combination of organic and acquisition growth strategies.
For more information, please visit www.southfieldcapital.com.
