Middle Market Growth Conversations

This episode is brought to you by QBE North America, part of QBE Insurance Group Limited, one of the largest insurers and reinsurers worldwide. *** Tom Fitzgerald, president of QBE North America’s Specialty & Commercial business, joins the podcast to discuss a recent survey that explores the risks and concerns facing midsize companies in 2020. Commissioned by QBE in partnership with the Association for Corporate Growth, the survey identifies which macro risks are weighing heaviest on the minds of middle-market leaders, along with their unmet risk-management needs. In the first of three podcast episodes, Fitzgerald outlines the top macro risks revealed by the survey, and he describes some of the specific risks related to the pandemic, including worker safety and rehiring processes. Check back in the coming weeks to hear the next two interviews with QBE and a further exploration of risk in the middle market. Find the full risk report on QBE's website: https://www.qbe.com/us/risk-report The Middle Market Growth Conversations podcast is produced by the Association for Corporate Growth. To learn more about the organization and how to become a member, visit www.acg.org.

Closing a deal in 2020 can be challenging, particularly when the parties involved operate in different countries. Yet HKW announced in July that its portfolio company Fresh Direct Produce, a fresh produce importer in Western Canada, had acquired Mike & Mike's Organics, a distributor of fresh certified organic fruits and vegetables headquartered in Woodbridge, Ontario. On the podcast, HKW Partner John Carsello and Vice President Tom Shaw describe how they moved the deal forward during the pandemic, despite restrictions on travel to Canada from Indianapolis, where HKW is based, and why Mike & Mike's was an attractive target. Carsello and Shaw are joined by Davis Yung, Fresh Direct Produce's president and co-founder. Yung describes his company's growth trajectory leading up to COVID-19 , and how it has dealt with supply chain and safety challenges. He also offers insight into the Canadian grocery market, and how it compares with its U.S. counterpart. The Middle Market Growth Conversations podcast is brought to you by the Association for Corporate Growth. To learn more about the organization and how to become a member, visit www.acg.org.

The COVID-19 outbreak has wreaked havoc on the consumer products industry, prompting apparel and beauty brands to find ways to remain relevant. Meanwhile, many food brands and grocery retailers have seen unprecedented demand from customers who are now eating more meals at home. In this episode of the podcast, Robert von Furth, a managing director in Stout’s Investment Banking group, discusses how various categories within the consumer product space are coping with disruption, and which will be most attractive to buyers. He also describes what he's seeing in the middle-market deal environment more broadly, including the availability of credit, valuation challenges, and how the pandemic is changing due diligence. The podcast interview expands on themes that von Furth writes about in the September/October edition of Middle Market Growth magazine, which ACG members will receive later this month.Access the archive here: https://issuu.com/middlemarketgrowth The Middle Market Growth Conversations podcast is brought to you by the Association for Corporate Growth. To learn more about the organization and how to become a member, visit www.acg.org.

Fewer than one-third of companies that come to market end up selling successfully. Deal-makers have long sought to improve the odds by adding to their contact lists, but Denise Logan argues that establishing deeper relationships is a better solution. Logan is the author of "The Seller's Journey," a book she wrote based on her work advising business owners and their professional teams as they navigate the complex emotional journey of selling a business. On the podcast, Logan describes how a lack of trust causes many deals to fall apart and offers tips for how private equity firms and investment banks can establish better working relationships. She cites examples of deals imperiled by family strife behind the scenes and professional vendettas between parties on both sides of the table. Ultimately, the trust required to close a deal successfully hinges on building stronger relationships, and Logan offers tips for how deal-makers can shift away from collecting new contacts and toward deepening their existing relationships. She suggests following the lead of basketball legend Michael Jordan, whose efforts to connect with referees paid off on the court. "The Seller's Journey" is available for purchase through Logan's website, deniselogan.com/the-sellers-journey. *** The Middle Market Growth Conversations podcast is brought to you by the Association for Corporate Growth. To learn more about the organization and how to become a member, visit www.acg.org.

Melissa Mounce, a managing director focused on leadership talent at private equity firm GTCR, discusses human capital management and recruitment strategies, and why this is an area where more and more private equity firms are focusing. During the conversation, Mounce describes GTCR's approach to talent within its portfolio, and she points to the attributes that make a portfolio company leader successful--and which qualities tend not to be a good fit. She weighs in on how the leadership skill set has evolved over the years as businesses adapt to new technology and digitization. Mounce also comments on current talent and workforce trends, including record-high unemployment, the shift toward more permanent remote-work arrangements, and the continued importance of diversity and inclusion initiatives. *** The Middle Market Growth Conversations podcast is brought to you by the Association for Corporate Growth. To learn more about the organization and how to become a member, visit www.acg.org.

This episode is brought to you by RSM US LLP, a leading accounting, tax and advisory firm dedicated to the middle market. Last week, the Labor Department published a jobs report that showed stronger employment numbers than expected. Yet soon after the report's release, it became clear that the unemployment rate was likely much higher than official figures suggested. Kevin Depew, RSM's deputy chief economist and leader of the firm's national industry eminence program, returns to the podcast to give an economic update for the second quarter, including a look at the labor market and why the most recent government unemployment figures were too low. He also explains why the stock market continues to reflect optimism despite pain in the real economy, and how that dislocation could impact economic growth. Depew goes on to describe sentiment among middle-market business leaders and how the crisis has hastened new investments in technology, and he offers his prediction for the shape of an eventual economic recovery.

This episode is brought to you by RSM US LLP, a leading accounting, tax and advisory firm dedicated to the middle market. It features an extended interview with Anthony DeCandido, a partner in RSM's financial services practice, and Michael Fanelli, a transaction advisory services partner with RSM. Originally broadcast as a video interview on ACG's GrowthTV, the interview addresses the state of M&A in the middle market, including a look at deal activity, industries where deals are happening and valuation trends. Additional topics covered on the podcast include alternative data and where deal-makers are looking for new sources of information; how to analyze business performance in today's environment; and proposals coming out of Washington that would restrict M&A activity. To watch the video interview and access ACG's full video library, visit acg.org/growthtv. To learn more about RSM, visit rsmus.com *** The Middle Market Growth Conversations podcast is brought to you by the Association for Corporate Growth. To learn more about the organization and how to become a member, visit acg.org.

Mitch Cahn, president of Unionwear, a maker of custom branded accessories, spoke with ACG Global CEO Tom Bohn about the new sales strategy that prompted ACG New Jersey to honor Unionwear with a Corporate Growth Award. Unionwear's business, like many others, has changed over the past few months, including a shift to producing personal protective equipment, and Cahn describes how they were able to pivot. Unionwear's products also include baseball hats, backpacks, binders and more, and it manufacturers them all in the United States using union labor, making it attractive to presidential campaigns looking to order swag. At the end of the interview, Mitch hints at whose hats, Biden's or Trump's, are expected to sell fastest and why an election year is good for business. This interview was originally broadcast on ACG's GrowthTV. Watch it at acg.org/growthtv. *** The Middle Market Growth Conversations podcast is brought to you by the Association for Corporate Growth. To learn more about the organization and how to become a member, visit www.acg.org.

Tyler Brennan, founder and CEO of RaceDayQuads, spoke with Middle Market Growth about how he started his e-commerce business, which sells components for drones, with a focus on the first-person-view drone racing market. Brennan founded the company five years ago while he was a 21-year-old college student, and he's managed its warehouse in Florida remotely for most of that time. He continues to lead the business, which has grown to 30 employees, even as he serves full time in the U.S. Air Force as a first lieutenant and fighter pilot stationed in North Carolina. Many business leaders have been forced to manage their operations remotely, and Brennan offers advice based on his own experience. He also talks about the impact of COVID-19 on RaceDayQuads' supply chain, and he discusses the regulatory challenges facing the industry. *** The Middle Market Growth Conversations podcast is brought to you by the Association for Corporate Growth. To learn more about the organization and how to become a member, visit www.acg.org.

This week's podcast episode features Jane Miller, CEO of Lily's, a maker of sugar-free chocolate. Originally broadcast on ACG's GrowthTV, Miller speaks with ACG CEO Tom Bohn about leading Lily's through the disruption caused by COVID-19 and the support the business has received from its private equity backer, VMG Partners. Although the company is in a strong financial position, Miller says Lily's has had to act quickly to protect the safety of employees. She also describes how her leadership style has changed at a time when everyone is working remotely, and how the company has adapted its digital marketing efforts and messaging in the current environment. Lily's was featured in the March/April cover story of Middle Market Growth magazine, which highlighted VMG and the entrepreneur-led brands it has helped scale, including Spindrift, Justin's, Perfect Snacks and many others. That article is available in the MMG archive: middlemarketgrowth.org/cover-growing-a-healthy-portfolio/. To watch interviews with Jane Miller and many other business leaders, visit acg.org/growthtv.