Sugar Land, TX August 04, 2025
PrimeFlight Aviation Services, a portfolio company of The Sterling Group, announced it had acquired StratAir’s cargo handling operations at Miami International Airport (MIA), Richmond International Airport (RIC), and Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in San Juan (SJU) last week. This acquisition marks a significant milestone in PrimeFlight’s ongoing global cargo expansion strategy.
The addition of StratAir’s cargo handling operations at MIA, RIC, and SJU enhances PrimeFlight’s presence at key domestic and international cargo gateways. The move expands its network and capabilities to better serve its customers, which include leading global logistics providers and air cargo carriers. StratAir’s facilities, including a 120,000-square-foot third-party handling complex at MIA, will be integrated into PrimeFlight’s cargo division, bringing with it an expanded capacity, operational scale, and an experienced team of professionals.
“This acquisition is a key step forward in our mission to build a world-class, integrated cargo handling network,” Craig Smyth, President and CEO for PrimeFlight explained. “StratAir has built a strong reputation in the industry, and we are excited to bring their expertise, infrastructure, and customer relationships into our growing portfolio. Together, we are even better positioned to support the evolving needs of the air cargo industry.”
The StratAir transaction follows PrimeFlight’s recent acquisition of AirWorld at London Heathrow Airport (LHR), underscoring the company’s strategy to build a global cargo network anchored in major international hubs.
“Together, these investments reflect our commitment to developing a scalable platform focused on high-volume cargo gateways and specialized product handling—supporting the industry’s growing demand for time-critical and e-commerce-driven logistics solutions,” Craig added. “PrimeFlight remains focused on delivering operational excellence through safety, innovation, and exceptional customer service—principles that will guide the integration of StratAir’s operations.”
Saltchuk Aviation, the former parent company of StratAir, supported its growth since acquiring the company in 2016.
“StratAir has been an integral part of the Saltchuk Aviation portfolio, and we’re incredibly proud of the team and everything we’ve accomplished together. We made the strategic decision to sell the operation to a partner with the scale and network to take it even further,” Mike Thompson, Chief Executive Officer of Saltchuk Aviation, added. “As we refocus on our core markets in Alaska and Hawaii, we knew StratAir deserved a partner with the resources and vision to support its continued growth. We wish them the very best in this next chapter with PrimeFlight.”
During the integration period, StratAir’s operations will continue under its current brand. Over time, these operations will transition to the PrimeFlight brand.
About PrimeFlight Aviation Services
Headquartered in Sugar Land, Texas, PrimeFlight Aviation Services and its network of subsidiaries provides major airlines and airports with ground handling, fueling services, cargo handling, GSE maintenance, aircraft services, deicing, passenger services, aviation cleaning supplies, and terminal services, as well as general aviation aircraft cleaning and support services, across a global footprint. PrimeFlight is a portfolio company of The Sterling Group and Capitol Meridian Partners. For more information, visit www.primeflight.com.
About The Sterling Group
Founded in 1982, The Sterling Group is a private equity and private credit investment firm that targets investments in basic manufacturing, distribution, and industrial services companies. Typical enterprise values of these companies at initial formation range from $100 million to $750 million. Sterling has sponsored the buyout of 76 platform companies and numerous add-on acquisitions for a total transaction value of over $25 billion. Sterling currently has over $9 billion of assets under management. For further information, please visit www.sterling-group.com.
Past performance is no guarantee of future results and all investments are subject to loss.
Houston, TX July 31, 2025
The Sterling Group (“Sterling”), a Houston, TX-based middle market private equity firm, today announced the acquisition of Precision Concepts International, LLC (“PCI” or “the Company”), a leading provider of specialty rigid packaging solutions, from ONCAP, the lower mid-market private equity platform of Onex Corporation (TSX: ONEX). Sterling will partner with existing PCI investors, including ONCAP and management, to support PCI’s continued growth.
Headquartered in Huntersville, North Carolina, PCI operates five manufacturing facilities across the U.S., with additional locations in Canada and Costa Rica, that service small to mid-size companies within stable, consumer-focused end sectors including personal care, household, and food and beverage products. Sterling has a long history of partnering with management teams in the packaging sector. Long-time specialty packaging executive Ken Swanson, who formerly served as Chief Executive Officer of Sterling portfolio company Liqui-Box, will serve as Chairman of PCI’s Board of Directors upon the closing of the transaction.
Evercore acted as financial advisor and Latham & Watkins LLP acted as legal advisor to The Sterling Group. William Blair and Stifel acted as financial advisors and Kirkland & Ellis LLP acted as legal advisor to PCI.
About The Sterling Group
Founded in 1982, The Sterling Group is a private equity and private credit investment firm that targets investments in basic manufacturing, distribution, and industrial services companies. Typical enterprise values of these companies at initial formation range from $100 million to $750 million. Sterling has sponsored the buyout of 76 platform companies and numerous add-on acquisitions for a total transaction value of over $25 billion. Sterling currently has over $9 billion of assets under management. For further information, please visit www.sterling-group.com.
About ONCAP
Founded in 2000, ONCAP is the dedicated lower mid-market private equity platform of Onex Corporation, committed to investing in and partnering with North American headquartered businesses and their management teams in our core sectors of emphasis. Today, ONCAP operates with a team of 39 employees managing $3.5 billion in assets across offices in Toronto and New York. For more information on ONCAP and Onex, visit www.oncap.com and www.onex.com.
About Onex
Onex invests and manages capital on behalf of its shareholders and clients across the globe. Formed in 1984, we have a long track record of creating value for our clients and shareholders. Our investors include a broad range of global clients, including public and private pension plans, sovereign wealth funds, banks, insurance companies, family offices and high-net-worth individuals. In total, Onex has approximately $53.1 billion in assets under management, of which $8.3 billion is Onex’ own investing capital. With offices in Toronto, New York, New Jersey and London, Onex and its experienced management teams are collectively the largest investors across Onex’ platforms.
Onex is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol ONEX. For more information on Onex, visit its website at www.onex.com. Onex’ security filings can also be accessed at www.sedarplus.ca.
Past performance is no guarantee of future results and all investments are subject to loss.
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Dallas, TX July 24, 2025
The Sterling Group Foundation Fund (the “Foundation Fund”), an operationally focused lower middle market private equity firm, announced the establishment of AGS American Glass Services (“AGS”), a multi-regional provider of custom glass and coatings solutions with operations across the Midwest.
AGS provides light, value-added fabrication and installation (glazing) of interior and exterior commercial glass systems, along with a range of specialty coating services for both interior and exterior applications. AGS is focused on building types that are “below the tree line” across a diverse set of end-markets including education, manufacturing, government, office, and retail, among others. AGS will seek to acquire businesses with market-leading customer service models in adjacent markets.
“We’re excited to launch AGS American Glass Services as a new platform dedicated to building a market-leading commercial glazing business. With a strong foundation of operational excellence and customer relationships, we see a significant opportunity to scale this platform nationally and partner with talented teams across the industry,” said Partner Lucas Cutler. The Sterling Group has deep experience in the building products industry.
AGS is a portfolio company of the Foundation Fund. The Foundation Fund aims to leverage The Sterling Group’s operational capabilities and experience in the industrial sector to “set the foundation” for growth at lower middle market companies. Other Foundation Fund portfolio companies include Premier Tire and Service, Compost 360, Russell Landscaping, and OGD Overhead Garage Door.
About The Sterling Group Foundation Fund
Founded in 1982, The Sterling Group is a private equity and private credit investment firm that targets investments in basic manufacturing, distribution, and industrial services companies. Typical enterprise values of these companies at initial formation range from $100 million to $1 billion. Sterling has sponsored the buyout of over 70 platform companies and numerous add-on acquisitions for a total transaction value of over $24 billion. Sterling currently has over $9 billion of assets under management. For further information, please visit www.sterling-group.com.
Past performance is no guarantee of future results and all investments are subject to loss.
Houston, TX July 15, 2025
The Sterling Group (“Sterling”), a Houston, TX-based middle market private equity firm, today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Precision Concepts International, LLC (“PCI” or “the Company”), a leading provider of specialty rigid packaging solutions, from ONCAP, the lower mid-market private equity platform of Onex Corporation (TSX: ONEX). Sterling will partner with existing PCI investors, including ONCAP and management, to support PCI’s continued growth.
Headquartered in Huntersville, North Carolina, PCI operates five manufacturing facilities across the U.S., with additional locations in Canada and Costa Rica, that service small to mid-size companies within stable, consumer-focused end sectors including personal care, household, and food and beverage products. Sterling has a long history of partnering with management teams in the packaging sector. Long-time specialty packaging executive Ken Swanson, who formerly served as Chief Executive Officer of Sterling portfolio company Liqui-Box, will serve as Chairman of PCI’s Board of Directors upon the closing of the transaction.
“I would like to thank ONCAP for their consistent, supportive partnership over the last eight years and their confidence in us to continue as a minority investor. Sterling’s decades-long commitment to employee buy-in and their proven track record within the industry is clear, and we look forward to working together towards continued growth and success in the years ahead,” said Ray Grupinski, Chief Executive Officer, Precision Concepts International, LLC.
“PCI’s unique track record of elevated customer service and product quality is the perfect foundation for continued expansion, both organically through Seven Levers initiatives, as well as through acquisitions. We look forward to partnering with management and ONCAP to help accelerate PCI’s nationwide expansion,” said Greg Elliott, Partner at The Sterling Group.
“It has been a privilege to partner with Ray and the outstanding PCI team. PCI reflects the essence of ONCAP’s investment approach — backing talented, ambitious leadership teams and executing against deep theses in our core sectors of emphasis where we have long-standing conviction. We’re excited to continue our journey with PCI alongside The Sterling Group as the business enters its next chapter of growth,” said Ryan Mashinter, Senior Managing Director at ONCAP.
Evercore acted as financial advisor and Latham & Watkins LLP acted as legal advisor to The Sterling Group. William Blair and Stifel acted as financial advisors and Kirkland & Ellis LLP acted as legal advisor to PCI.
About The Sterling Group
Founded in 1982, The Sterling Group is a private equity and private credit investment firm that targets investments in basic manufacturing, distribution, and industrial services companies. Typical enterprise values of these companies at initial formation range from $100 million to $750 million. Sterling has sponsored the buyout of 74 platform companies and numerous add-on acquisitions for a total transaction value of over $25 billion. Sterling currently has $9.4 billion of assets under management. For further information, please visit www.sterling-group.com.
About ONCAP
Founded in 2000, ONCAP is the dedicated lower mid-market private equity platform of Onex Corporation, committed to investing in and partnering with North American headquartered businesses and their management teams in our core sectors of emphasis. Today, ONCAP operates with a team of 39 employees managing $3.5 billion in assets across offices in Toronto and New York. For more information on ONCAP and Onex, visit www.oncap.com and www.onex.com.
About Onex
Onex invests and manages capital on behalf of its shareholders and clients across the globe. Formed in 1984, we have a long track record of creating value for our clients and shareholders. Our investors include a broad range of global clients, including public and private pension plans, sovereign wealth funds, banks, insurance companies, family offices and high-net-worth individuals. In total, Onex has approximately $53.1 billion in assets under management, of which $8.3 billion is Onex’ own investing capital. With offices in Toronto, New York, New Jersey and London, Onex and its experienced management teams are collectively the largest investors across Onex’ platforms.
Onex is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol ONEX. For more information on Onex, visit its website at www.onex.com. Onex’ security filings can also be accessed at www.sedarplus.ca.
Past performance is no guarantee of future results and all investments are subject to loss.
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Hartselle, AL and Houston, TX July 02, 2025
Supports Leading Provider of Electric Utility Maintenance and Construction Services in its Mission to Address Growing US Power Demand and Needed Grid Improvements
The Sterling Group completed the sale of PowerGrid Services (“PowerGrid” or the “Company”) to Apollo (NYSE:APO). PowerGrid is a leading provider of maintenance and construction services to electric utilities across the United States. Existing investors, including The Sterling Group and management, will partner with Apollo to support the Company’s continued growth.
PowerGrid keeps the lights on across America by delivering essential utility services—from routine construction and maintenance to emergency response. With over 1,700 skilled in-house professionals and thousands more through its national vendor network, PowerGrid brings scale and speed to utility customers nationwide. Its hybrid service model supports construction, repair and maintenance of the full power grid, including transmission, distribution, substations and vegetation management. The Company’s safety-first culture and reliability has made it a go-to partner for grid modernization and resilience efforts in over 35 states.
Lincoln International acted as financial advisor to PowerGrid and its shareholders and Stifel acted as financial co-advisor while Kirkland & Ellis LLP served as legal counsel.
J.P. Morgan Securities LLC acted as financial advisor to Apollo on the transaction, while Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP served as legal counsel.
About PowerGrid Services
PowerGrid is a national provider of mission-critical electric utility services, offering a uniquely integrated platform across planned infrastructure work and rapid emergency response. Leveraging a hybrid service model that combines an in-house team of more than 1,700 skilled professionals with access to thousands of additional resources through our national vendor network, the company is built to respond quickly and safely when it matters most. PowerGrid supports the full electrical infrastructure lifecycle, providing construction, repair, and maintenance from distribution and transmission to substations and vegetation management. The Company’s commitment to safety and service excellence has made it a trusted partner for grid modernization, hardening, and event response to investor-owned utilities, municipalities, and co-ops across 35 states.
About Apollo
Apollo is a high-growth, global alternative asset manager. In our asset management business, we seek to provide our clients excess return at every point along the risk-reward spectrum from investment grade credit to private equity. For more than three decades, our investing expertise across our fully integrated platform has served the financial return needs of our clients and provided businesses with innovative capital solutions for growth. Through Athene, our retirement services business, we specialize in helping clients achieve financial security by providing a suite of retirement savings products and acting as a solutions provider to institutions. Our patient, creative, and knowledgeable approach to investing aligns our clients, businesses we invest in, our employees, and the communities we impact, to expand opportunity and achieve positive outcomes. As of March 31, 2025, Apollo had approximately $785 billion of assets under management. To learn more, please visit www.apollo.com.
About The Sterling Group
Founded in 1982, The Sterling Group is a private equity investment firm that targets investments in manufacturing, distribution, and industrial services companies. Typical enterprise values of these companies at initial formation range from $100 million to $750 million. Sterling has sponsored the buyout of 74 platform companies and numerous add-on acquisitions for a total transaction value of over $25 billion. Sterling currently has over $9 billion of assets under management. For further information, please visit www.sterling-group.com.
Past performance is no guarantee of future results and all investments are subject to loss.
Houston, TX June 02, 2025
The Sterling Group (“Sterling”), a Houston, TX-based middle market private equity firm, today announced it has completed its previously announced sale of Artisan Design Group (“ADG”), a leading nationwide provider of design, distribution and installation services for interior surface finishes to home builders and property managers, to Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE: LOW).
Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, ADG operates 132 distribution, design and service facilities and coordinates installation through over 3,200 personnel across 18 states. Under Sterling’s ownership, ADG has completed 15 acquisitions, each of which was founder or entrepreneur owned. Sterling has a 40+ year history of partnering with founder- and family-owned industrial businesses.
Advisors
Centerview Partners LLC is acting as lead financial advisor to Lowe’s. Greenhill, a Mizuho affiliate, is also acting as financial advisor to Lowe’s. Covington & Burling LLP is acting as legal advisor to Lowe’s. RBC Capital Markets is acting as lead financial advisor to ADG. Goldman Sachs and Robert W. Baird are also acting as financial advisors to ADG. Latham & Watkins LLP is acting as legal advisor to ADG.
About Artisan Design Group
ADG provides design, distribution, and installation services for interior finishes including flooring, cabinets, and countertops to national and local homebuilders and property managers. Formed in 2016 by the merging of two industry leaders, ADG currently operates 132 distribution, design, and service facilities in 18 states, and is headquartered in Dallas, Texas.
About Lowe’s
Lowe’s is a FORTUNE® 100 home improvement company serving approximately 16 million customer transactions a week in the United States. With total fiscal year 2024 sales of more than $83 billion, Lowe’s operates over 1,700 home improvement stores and employs approximately 300,000 associates. Based in Mooresville, N.C., Lowe’s supports the communities it serves through programs focused on creating safe, affordable housing, improving community spaces, helping to develop the next generation of skilled trade experts and providing disaster relief to communities in need. For more information, visit Lowes.com.
About The Sterling Group
Founded in 1982, The Sterling Group is a private equity and private credit investment firm that targets investments in basic manufacturing, distribution, and industrial services companies. Typical enterprise values of these companies at initial formation range from $100 million to $750 million. Sterling has sponsored the buyout of 74 platform companies and numerous add-on acquisitions for a total transaction value of over $25 billion. Sterling currently has $9.4 billion of assets under management. For further information, please visit www.sterling-group.com.
Past performance is no guarantee of future results and all investments are subject to loss.
Disclosure Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This press release includes “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Statements including words such as “believe”, “expect”, “anticipate”, “plan”, “desire”, “project”, “estimate”, “intend”, “will”, “should”, “could”, “would”, “may”, “strategy”, “potential”, “opportunity”, “outlook”, “scenario”, “guidance”, and similar expressions are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve, among other things, expectations, projections and assumptions about future financial and operating results, objectives (including objectives related to environmental and social matters), business outlook, priorities, sales growth, shareholder value, capital expenditures, cash flows, the housing market, the home improvement industry, demand for products and services including customer acceptance of new offerings and initiatives, macroeconomic conditions and consumer spending and Lowe’s strategic initiatives, including those relating to acquisitions and dispositions and the impact of such transactions on our strategic and operational plans and financial results. Such statements involve risks and uncertainties, and we can give no assurance that they will prove to be correct. Actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied in such statements.
A wide variety of potential risks, uncertainties, and other factors could materially affect our ability to achieve the results either expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements including, but not limited to, the occurrence of any event or other circumstance that could give rise to the right of one or both of the parties to terminate the merger agreement between Lowe’s and ADG, the failure to obtain the requisite approvals or to satisfy the other conditions to the proposed merger on a timely basis or at all, the possibility that the anticipated benefits and synergies of the merger are not realized when expected, or at all, including as a result of the impact of, or problems arising from, the integration of the two companies or as a result of changes in general economic conditions, such as volatility and/or lack of liquidity from time to time in U.S. and world financial markets and the consequent reduced availability and/or higher cost of borrowing to Lowe’s and its customers, slower rates of growth in real disposable personal income that could affect the rate of growth in consumer spending, inflation and its impacts on discretionary spending and on our costs, shortages and other disruptions in the labor supply, interest rate and currency fluctuations, home price appreciation or decreasing housing turnover, age of housing stock, the availability of consumer credit and of mortgage financing, trade policy changes or additional tariffs, outbreaks of pandemics, fluctuations in fuel and energy costs, inflation or deflation of commodity prices, natural disasters, geopolitical or armed conflicts, acts of both domestic and international terrorism, and other factors that can negatively affect our customers.
Investors and others should carefully consider the foregoing factors and other uncertainties, risks and potential events including, but not limited to, those described in “Item 1A – Risk Factors” in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and as may be updated from time to time in Item 1A in our quarterly reports on Form 10-Q or other subsequent filings with the SEC. All such forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and we do not undertake any obligation to update these statements other than as required by law.
LOW-IR
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Houston, TX May 21, 2025
The Sterling Group (“Sterling”), announced that it has completed the sale of West Star Aviation (“West Star” or the “Company”), a highly-regarded provider of maintenance, repair and overhaul (“MRO”) for business aviation aircraft to funds managed by Greenbriar Equity Group, L.P. (“Greenbriar”). Financial terms of the private transaction were not disclosed.
Since its founding in 1947, West Star has built a reputation as a premier service provider for business aviation. The Company offers comprehensive MRO capabilities across aircraft manufactured by every major OEM and maintains the largest aircraft on ground (“AOG”) technician network nationally, ensuring prompt and reliable mobile repair services. Supported by a deeply knowledgeable and experienced management team, West Star remains focused on delivering excellent customer service and quality.
“In partnership with Sterling, West Star has continuously worked to deliver exceptional service to its customers, while growing to better support the business aviation market,” said Stephen Maiden, CEO of West Star. “As we embark on this next phase, Greenbriar’s extensive experience and proven track-record in expanding aviation aftermarket platforms will be invaluable to us. With their support, we aim to not only accelerate our progress and enhance our capabilities but also ensure that our dedicated employees and the unique needs of our customers remain at the forefront of everything we do.”
“We would like to thank Stephen and the entire West Star team for placing their trust in Sterling and for all of their work in building West Star into a market leader over the past several years,” said John Griffin, Partner at The Sterling Group.
“West Star is an exceptional business with comprehensive capabilities and a strong customer value proposition that aligns with Greenbriar’s strategy of partnering with market leading aviation and aerospace businesses poised for growth,” said Noah Blitzer, Managing Director at Greenbriar. “We are excited to partner with Stephen and his team to continue building on West Star’s legacy as a premier MRO provider delivering high quality service to its customers.”
Kirkland & Ellis LLP served as legal counsel and Evercore served as financial advisor to Greenbriar. Harris Williams LLC and Jefferies LLC served as co-lead financial advisors to West Star; Solomon Partners also advised on the transaction. Latham & Watkins LLP served as legal advisor to West Star.
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About West Star Aviation
With more than 78 years of industry experience, West Star Aviation stands as a leading independent Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO) provider. Employing over 3,000 professionals, West Star offers comprehensive services from our strategically located full-service facilities in East Alton, IL; Grand Junction, CO; Chattanooga, TN; Millville, NJ; Perryville, MO; and Statesville, NC, as well as multiple satellite locations. The company’s extensive capabilities encompass airframe maintenance, paint, interior, and avionics services, supported by the largest Aircraft On Ground (AOG) technician network in the country, ensuring prompt and reliable mobile repair services nationwide.
About Greenbriar
Greenbriar is a middle market private equity firm with 20+ years of experience investing in market-leading services and manufacturing businesses. With $10+ billion of cumulative capital commitments, its investment strategy targets businesses led by experienced management teams capitalizing on strong long-term growth prospects that can benefit from Greenbriar’s deep sectoral expertise, strategic insight, and operating capabilities. For more information, please visit greenbriarequity.com.
About The Sterling Group
Founded in 1982, The Sterling Group is a private equity investment firm that targets investments in manufacturing, distribution, and industrial services companies. Typical enterprise values of these companies at initial formation range from $100 million to $750 million. Sterling has sponsored the buyout of 74 platform companies and numerous add-on acquisitions for a total transaction value of over $25 billion. Sterling currently has $9.4 billion of assets under management. For further information, please visit www.sterling-group.com.
Past performance is no guarantee of future results and all investments are subject to loss.
Houston, TX May 15, 2025
Darin Matson, longtime sector executive and former CEO of Rogers Group, Inc., appointed CEO of the newly established PPG platform
The Sterling Group (“Sterling”), a Houston, TX-based middle market private equity firm, today announced the acquisitions of Arizona-headquartered Pavement Preservation Group, Inc. (“PPGI”), and Vance Brothers, LLC (“Vance”), headquartered in Kansas City, MO. As part of this series of transactions, the PPGI and Vance organizations will operate as regional divisions of Pavement Preservation Group (“PPG”), a newly formed national platform aimed at building upon the acquired companies’ regional leadership across the southwest and central United States to forge the sector’s preeminent nationwide operator. PPG will be led by Darin Matson, a pavement sector senior executive with over twenty-five years of experience, who most recently served as the CEO of the Rogers Group, Inc., the largest privately owned aggregates producer in the United States with significant highway construction and asphalt service offerings in the Southeast.
PPG, through its best-in-class regional operating divisions, partners with customers across the country to help extend the life of urban and rural asphalt roads via best-in-class local execution capabilities. This suite of services includes scrub sealing, fog sealing, chip sealing, slurry sealing, microsurfacing, patch paving, and crack sealing operations as well as numerous emulsions and polymer modified asphalt products. These modern pavement preservation operations enhance the life of roads and can be meaningfully more cost-effective, more sustainable, and result in fewer traffic disruptions when compared to traditional rehabilitation and reconstruction methods.
“Since 1982, The Sterling Group has sought to partner with family businesses, entrepreneur owners, and their management teams to accelerate growth and build enduring businesses. The Sterling, PPGI, and Vance teams have a shared vision to bring together leading companies from distinct geographies. By sharing best practices and leveraging benefits of scale, we can accelerate growth and better serve our customers. We are grateful to partner with best-in-class operators as we establish a national leader in the pavement preservation industry,” said Brad Staller, Partner at The Sterling Group.
“I am thrilled to join the PPG platform and look forward to partnering with our premier regional divisions to help build the national leader in pavement preservation,” said Darin Matson, CEO of PPG. “Sterling’s deep operational expertise, extensive knowledge of the industry’s end markets and customers, and track record of success with other buy-and-build platforms were important to the management teams and family-owners of PPGI and Vance. We will work together to help PPG’s pavement specialists provide best-in-class service to customers across the country.”
About The Sterling Group
Founded in 1982, The Sterling Group is a private equity and private credit investment firm that targets interests in basic manufacturing, distribution and industrial services companies. Typical enterprise values of these companies range from $100 million to $750 million. Sterling has sponsored the buyout of 74 platform companies and numerous add-on acquisitions for a total transaction value of over $25 billion. Currently, Sterling has over $9.4 billion of assets under management. For further information, please visit www.sterling-group.com.
Past performance is no guarantee of future results and all investments are subject to loss.
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Hartselle, AL and New York, NY May 13, 2025
Supports Leading Provider of Electric Utility Maintenance and Construction Services in its Mission to Address Growing US Power Demand and Needed Grid Improvements
Apollo (NYSE:APO) today announced that Apollo-managed funds and affiliates associated with its hybrid strategies (the “Apollo Funds”) have agreed to acquire a majority stake in PowerGrid Services (“PGS”), a leading provider of maintenance and construction services to electric utilities across the United States. The Apollo Funds will partner with existing PGS investors, including company management and The Sterling Group, to support PGS’s continued growth.
PowerGrid Services keeps the lights on across America by delivering essential utility services—from routine construction and maintenance to emergency response. With over 1,400 skilled in-house professionals and thousands more through its national vendor network, PGS brings scale and speed to utility customers nationwide. Its hybrid service model supports construction, repair and maintenance of the full power grid, including transmission, distribution, substations and vegetation management. PGS’s safety-first culture and reliability has made it a go-to partner for grid modernization and resilience efforts in over 35 states.
Quentin Gillette, CEO of PGS, and Beth Gillette, PGS Board Member and Strategic Advisor, said, “We are thrilled to announce this transaction with Apollo, which marks an exciting milestone for our company. We founded PGS with a clear vision to be a trusted utility partner dedicated to solving challenges, strengthening our nation’s electric grid and improving quality of life in the communities where we operate. Apollo’s operational and strategic support will help us level up our capabilities and growth while remaining true to our culture and core mission of providing safe and reliable services to our customers. We are also grateful for The Sterling Group’s support over the past several years.”
Craig Horton, Partner at Apollo, said, “We are proud to partner with Quentin, Beth and the entire PGS leadership team to support PGS’s growth as a trusted partner to electric utility customers across the US. Apollo is focused on meeting the capital needs of industries that are driving a Global Industrial Renaissance, and we believe PGS is well positioned to help meet the growing demand for power across the country through its contributions to grid stability and electric infrastructure. The investment by the Apollo Funds enables us to bring the considerable resources of the Apollo platform to bear to help accelerate PGS’s geographic expansion, both organically and through its targeted acquisition strategy.”
Kent Wallace, Partner at The Sterling Group, said, “Since 2021, our team has worked closely with PGS’ leadership group to help the company triple in size and deliver the infrastructure needed to meet critical electric grid services. We look forward to supporting the company’s continued success.”
The transaction is subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions, including receipt of required regulatory approvals.
J.P. Morgan Securities LLC acted as financial advisor to the Apollo Funds on the transaction, while Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP served as legal counsel.
Lincoln International acted as financial advisor to PGS and its shareholders, including management and The Sterling Group, while Kirkland & Ellis LLP served as legal counsel.
About PowerGrid Services
PowerGrid Services (“PGS”) is a national provider of mission-critical electric utility services, offering a uniquely integrated platform across planned infrastructure work and rapid emergency response. Leveraging a hybrid service model that combines an in-house team of more than 1,400 skilled professionals with access to thousands of additional resources through our national vendor network, the company is built to respond quickly and safely when it matters most. PGS supports the full electrical infrastructure lifecycle, providing construction, repair, and maintenance from distribution and transmission to substations and vegetation management. The company’s commitment to safety and service excellence has made it a trusted partner for grid modernization, hardening, and event response to investor-owned utilities, municipalities, and co-ops across 35 states.
About Apollo
Apollo is a high-growth, global alternative asset manager. In our asset management business, we seek to provide our clients excess return at every point along the risk-reward spectrum from investment grade credit to private equity. For more than three decades, our investing expertise across our fully integrated platform has served the financial return needs of our clients and provided businesses with innovative capital solutions for growth. Through Athene, our retirement services business, we specialize in helping clients achieve financial security by providing a suite of retirement savings products and acting as a solutions provider to institutions. Our patient, creative, and knowledgeable approach to investing aligns our clients, businesses we invest in, our employees, and the communities we impact, to expand opportunity and achieve positive outcomes. As of March 31, 2025, Apollo had approximately $785 billion of assets under management. To learn more, please visit www.apollo.com.
About The Sterling Group
Founded in 1982, The Sterling Group is a private equity investment firm that targets investments in manufacturing, distribution, and industrial services companies. Typical enterprise values of these companies at initial formation range from $100 million to $750 million. Sterling has sponsored the buyout of 74 platform companies and numerous add-on acquisitions for a total transaction value of over $25 billion. Sterling currently has $9.4 billion of assets under management. For further information, please visit www.sterling-group.com.
Past performance is no guarantee of future results and all investments are subject to loss.
Houston, TX April 14, 2025
The Sterling Group (“Sterling”), a middle market private equity firm, announced today that it has agreed to sell Artisan Design Group (“ADG” or the “Company”) to Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE: LOW) for $1.325 billion. ADG is a leading nationwide provider of design, distribution and installation services for interior surface finishes, including flooring, cabinets and countertops, to national, regional, and local homebuilders and property managers.
Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, ADG operates 132 distribution, design and service facilities and coordinates installation through over 3,200 personnel across 18 states. “Since initially partnering with co-founders Larry Barr and Wayne Joseph in 2018, Sterling has been proud to support ADG during a period of significant growth and expansion,” said Johann Friese, Director at The Sterling Group. Under Sterling’s ownership, ADG has completed 15 acquisitions, each of which was founder or entrepreneur owned. Sterling has a 40+ year history of partnering with founder- and family-owned industrial businesses.
ADG will expand Lowe’s Pro offering into a new distribution channel within a highly fragmented, approximately $50 billion market. “With more than 18 million homes needed in the United States by 2033, we expect new home construction will be a major driver of Pro planned spend for the next decade. The acquisition of ADG allows us to build on our momentum with Pro planned spend and is expected to expand our total addressable market by approximately $50 billion,” said Marvin R. Ellison, Lowe’s chairman, president and CEO. “With its strong, customer-centric operating model, ADG has become an industry leader with best-in-class customer satisfaction scores from the top builders in the U.S. We look forward to welcoming the ADG team to Lowe’s, and, through our combined capabilities, enhancing our offering to our expanded Pro customer base.”
“We are thrilled for ADG to join forces with Lowe’s,” said Steve Margolius, ADG’s CEO. “Our leading position in flooring, cabinets and countertops, combined with Lowe’s scale and category breadth, will allow us to continue on our growth trajectory while providing an even more differentiated and comprehensive offering to the builders and property managers we serve today.”
The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2025, subject to receipt of requisite regulatory approvals and satisfaction of other customary closing conditions. RBC Capital Markets is acting as lead financial advisor to ADG. Goldman Sachs is also acting as financial advisor to ADG. Latham & Watkins LLP is acting as legal advisor to ADG.
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About Artisan Design Group
ADG provides design, distribution, and installation services for interior finishes including flooring, cabinets, and countertops to national and local homebuilders and property managers. Formed in 2016 by the merging of two industry leaders, ADG currently operates 132 distribution, design, and service facilities in 18 states, and is headquartered in Dallas, Texas.
About The Sterling Group
Founded in 1982, The Sterling Group is a private equity and private credit investment firm that targets investments in basic manufacturing, distribution, and industrial services companies. Typical enterprise values of these companies at initial formation range from $100 million to $750 million. Sterling has sponsored the buyout of 74 platform companies and numerous add-on acquisitions for a total transaction value of over $25 billion. Sterling currently has $9.4 billion of assets under management. For further information, please visit www.sterling-group.com.
Past performance is no guarantee of future results and all investments are subject to loss.
About Lowe’s
Lowe’s is a FORTUNE® 50 home improvement company serving approximately 16 million customer transactions a week in the United States. With total fiscal year 2024 sales of more than $83 billion, Lowe’s operates over 1,700 home improvement stores and employs approximately 300,000 associates. Based in Mooresville, N.C., Lowe’s supports the communities it serves through programs focused on creating safe, affordable housing, improving community spaces, helping to develop the next generation of skilled trade experts and providing disaster relief to communities in need. For more information, visit Lowes.com.
Disclosure Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This press release includes “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Statements including words such as “believe”, “expect”, “anticipate”, “plan”, “desire”, “project”, “estimate”, “intend”, “will”, “should”, “could”, “would”, “may”, “strategy”, “potential”, “opportunity”, “outlook”, “scenario”, “guidance”, and similar expressions are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve, among other things, expectations, projections and assumptions about future financial and operating results, business outlook, priorities, sales growth, shareholder value, the housing market, the home improvement industry, demand for products and services including customer acceptance of new offerings and initiatives. Such statements involve risks and uncertainties, and we can give no assurance that they will prove to be correct. Actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied in such statements.
A wide variety of potential risks, uncertainties, and other factors could materially affect the ability to achieve the results either expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements including, but not limited to, the occurrence of any event or other circumstance that could give rise to the right of one or both of the parties to terminate the merger agreement between Lowe’s and ADG, the failure to obtain the requisite approvals or to satisfy the other conditions to the proposed merger on a timely basis or at all, the possibility that the anticipated benefits and synergies of the merger are not realized when expected, or at all, including as a result of the impact of, or problems arising from, the integration of the two companies or as a result of changes in general economic conditions. All such forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and Lowe’s does not undertake any obligation to update these statements other than as required by law.
Press releases and articles published prior to November 4, 2022 are being provided for informational purposes only and are not intended as advertising.
The Sterling Group is an operationally focused middle market private equity firm that builds winning businesses for customers, employees and investors.
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