News

Bertram Capital has acquired Hampton, Virginia-based Registrar LLC, a provider of U.S. Food and Drug Administration compliance services. No financial terms were disclosed.

PRESS RELEASE

SAN MATEO, Calif., June 5, 2018 /PRNewswire/ — Bertram Capital (“Bertram”) today announced its investment in Registrar, LLC (“Registrar” or the “Company”), a leading SaaS assisted provider of U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) compliance services to domestic and foreign food, medical device, drugs, and cosmetic facilities. Since opening its headquarters in Hampton, Virginia in 2003, Registrar has expanded to eighteen international offices and assisted more than 30,000 companies across 160 countries. Employees include former U.S. FDA officials, scientists, and industry experts.

“We have pursued a thesis in the food safety and compliance market for the past four years. The confluence of our thesis and Bertram Labs’ software proficiency made Registrar a compelling target. The Registrar team’s objectives aligned perfectly with our strength and drive to bring IT excellence to our companies, and we are delighted to partner with Registrar’s management to deliver that objective,” said Tom Beerle, Principal at Bertram Capital. “We believe the Company’s growth and market position are representative of Registrar’s superior expertise in regulatory matters, innovative technology-first mentality, and proven commitment to customer service.”

The investment in Registrar represents the fourth platform acquisition completed in Bertram’s third fund. Registrar has established itself as a recognized leader in FDA compliance support and continues expanding its portfolio of services to effectively address customers’ unique and ever-changing regulatory concerns. Continuing Bertram’s approach of partnering closely with business owners, Registrar’s co-founders Thomas Fass and David Lennarz will retain significant ownership and leadership roles in the Company going forward.

“We believe now is the right time to partner with an investor to support our continued growth,” said David Lennarz. “While we had a lot of options in picking a partner, we believe Bertram’s dedicated technology and digital marketing resources are going to be uniquely valuable as we continue to expand the services and products we offer our customers.”

“As the head of technology and marketing, I was particularly intrigued by the Bertram Labs story,” added Thomas Fass. “While our team has achieved great success in building a much-needed solution for our clients, the access to Bertram Labs’ software and digital marketing resources is a powerful tool that complements our team, and will accelerate the launch of new products and services.”

As the FDA releases new rules and guidance documents, Registrar helps clients navigate the constantly changing FDA landscape. The Company’s growth initiatives and suite of software solutions to aid in compliance with FDA requirements align closely with Bertram’s value creation platform, the Bertram High-5SM.

“Registrar represents the exact situation we look for as an investor: great management team, favorable market conditions, and an opportunity for the Bertram Labs team to be a truly value added partner,” said Jeff Drazan, Managing Partner of Bertram. “Tom Beerle did an outstanding job of leading this deal to a successful close and was supported by David Hellier who sourced the transaction, Tom Long, Head of Growth and Digital Marketing for Bertram Labs, and Michael Henkels, deal team Associate. I would also like to thank Franklin Staley, Managing Director, and the team at DCS Advisory, who introduced us to this opportunity and ran a very professional process.”

About Registrar Corp:
Registrar Corp was founded in 2003 to help businesses comply with U.S. FDA regulations. Since opening its headquarters in Hampton, Virginia, USA, Registrar Corp has expanded to eighteen international offices and has aided more than 30,000 companies across 160 countries. Employees include former U.S. FDA officials, scientists, and industry experts. Registrar Corp offers FDA compliance assistance for the food and beverage, medical device, drugs, cosmetics, electronics, and tobacco industries. Visit www.registrarcorp.com for more information.

About Bertram Capital:
With over $1.4 billion in committed capital, Bertram Capital is a private equity firm targeting investments in lower middle market companies. By supplying flexible investment capital and committing a wealth of operational and strategic resources to each investment, we make it our core objective to move companies, management teams and employees toward unlocking their full potential. Visit www.bertramcapital.com for more information.