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February 4th, 2020

The Truck Stops Here: Olympus Sells IXS

Olympus Partners is pleased to announce that it has agreed to sell Innovative XCessories & Services, LLC (“IXS”) to Clearlake Capital. IXS is composed of two divisions: Ground Effects and IXS Coatings. Ground Effects provides automotive OEMs with vehicle upfit services, including spray-on pickup truck bedliners, as well as functional exterior accessories through a network of 20+ facilities in North America and Thailand. IXS Coatings includes LINE-X, a franchisor of 500+ branded service locations and the industry’s largest aftermarket retailer of spray-on bedliners, as well as Industrial Coatings, which provides protective coating solutions to a wide and expanding range of end markets.

Since Olympus’ investment in August 2014, IXS has more than tripled EBITDA organically, opened more than ten new production facilities, and completed several acquisitions.

“The success of this transaction was driven by the hard work and talent of the IXS management team. They were able to expand their market leading position by continuing to innovate while never losing their dedication to customer service. They have built an extraordinary company and I look forward to seeing it continue to grow under new ownership,” said Jason Miller, a partner at Olympus.

Jim Scott, CEO of IXS and President of Ground Effects, commented, “Olympus has provided invaluable strategic insight and financial support during a period of tremendous growth for IXS. I could never have imagined being connected to such a wonderful partner.”

Founded in 1988, Olympus Partners is a private equity firm focused on providing equity capital for middle market management buyouts and for companies needing capital for expansion. Olympus is an active, long-term investor across a broad range of industries including business services, consumer products, healthcare services, financial services, industrial services, and manufacturing. Olympus manages in excess of $8.5 billion mainly on behalf of corporate pension funds, endowment funds and state-sponsored retirement programs.

The Olympus team included Jason Miller, Jim Conroy, Ozan Cubukcu, and Matt Bujor. IXS and Olympus were advised in the transaction by Jefferies and Harris Williams, with legal representation from Jim Faley, Alyssa Christensen, Jeremy Mandell, and Marina Yarnoff of Kirkland & Ellis.

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