SUMMARY 

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In business for over 30 years, American Patrols is a well-respected, family-owned aerial patrol operator based in Midland, Texas.  The company provides oil and gas production lease patrol, water pipeline and gathering patrol, aerial photography and land/right of way inspection services to several of the largest E&P operators in the Permian Basin.  Romanchuk & Co. was engaged to be the exclusive sell-side advisor for the owners, who were looking to retire from the business.

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UNIQUE MARKETING APPROACH  

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We had to approach the marketing of American Patrols a bit differently than what we would consider a more traditional process given the unique attributes of the company:​

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• The company's niche services would require an investor with a similar operational background

• Owners both desired to retire fully from the business within the first six months post-close

• Oil and gas industry was still recovering from the recent downturn

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FINDING THE BEST FIT  

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Knowing a traditional marketing approach for this business to a strategic or private equity firm would likely not result in a successful process, we leveraged our extensive network within the energy services industry to conduct a targeted search, ultimately finding an independent sponsor that met the requirements the exiting owners were looking for - both a strong valuation and comfort knowing that the Company’s operations would be in good hands. American Patrols received a LOI from Bear Capital and the deal progressed through due diligence and legal documentation smoothly and closed in just a few months.

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INDEPENDENT SPONSORS VS. PRIVATE EQUITY  

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Independent sponsors are becoming more and more popular in today's marketplace.  What makes them a bit different from private equity firms, is that they usually conduct their fundraising efforts on a deal-by-deal basis instead of drawing from a committed capital fund, and also target deals more directly based upon their operational experience.  Bear Capital not only had the business and financial experience of owning a company, but had nearly a decade of experience as a Pilot and Director of Operations in the Air Force.  This gave the owners a high level of confidence that the company they built would transition smoothly for their customers and employees. 

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