News

Heartland Veterinary Partners (“Heartland”), a leading veterinarian-led, veterinarian-centric, growth-oriented veterinary support organization, has completed a majority recapitalization with Gryphon Investors (“Gryphon”), who is investing and partnering alongside current shareholders Tyree & D’Angelo Partners (“TDP”) and management.

Founded in 2016 and based in Chicago, IL, Heartland is one of the fastest-growing veterinary support organizations (VSO) in the United States with nearly 100 veterinary hospitals throughout the Mid-American and Southern markets. The Company supports a network of over 200 general practice veterinarians who provide a range of animal health services to companion animals. The Company has a strong track record of growth through acquisition of veterinary practices in attractive underlying markets and continues to increase its presence and add greater density in its existing geographies. Heartland maintains an exceptional reputation as the partner of choice for veterinarians who benefit from a wide array of non-clinical services that the company provides which has resulted in industry-leading veterinarian retention.

Dr. George Robinson, Heartland’s Chief Executive Officer, commented, “We have thoroughly enjoyed our partnership and relationship with TDP who has supported our rapid growth to date and helped us deliver on our mission of improving the lives of our veterinarian partners. The collaborative partnership with TDP has helped set a strong foundation for growth and future success, and we are very excited about our new partnership with Gryphon to support our accelerating growth in the veterinary market. It is an exciting time for Heartland, and we appreciate the additional resources and capabilities in multi-site healthcare operations that Gryphon will bring to our partnership to further support our expansion and improve our overall capabilities.”

Luke Schroeder, Principal at Gryphon, added, “We are very excited to partner with Heartland, its management team, and TDP to support the company’s continued rapid expansion. We have spent significant time and resources evaluating various veterinary support organizations, and believe Heartland is a premier company with an industry-leading and differentiated value proposition that resonates with companion animal veterinarians and will position the company well for exceptional continued performance.”

Tyree and D’Angelo, Co-Chief Executive Officers at TDP, added, “It has been a pleasure working alongside and partnering with the Heartland management team in helping build the company into an industry-leading veterinary platform. We enjoyed executing with the management team our collaborative Value Creation Plan to provide a unique partnership solution to veterinarians and their team members. We are grateful for people entrusting their businesses and careers to us and Heartland. We are very excited about Heartland’s future and look forward to continuing to support the company and its team members in Heartland’s next phase of growth.”

William Blair served as the exclusive financial advisor to Heartland. Varagon Capital Partners served as the lead financing partner for the transaction, with NXT Capital and other lenders providing additional financing for the transaction. Winston & Strawn LLP served as legal advisor to Heartland. McGuireWoods LLP served as a regulatory advisor to Heartland. Kirkland & Ellis LLP served as legal and regulatory advisor to Gryphon.

About Heartland Veterinary Partners
Heartland Veterinary Partners is one of the highest quality and fastest growing veterinary support organizations in the United States, with approximately 100 veterinary practices across the Mid-American and Southern markets. Heartland’s footprint continues to rapidly expand through the successful execution of veterinary practice acquisitions and partnerships with independent practicing veterinarians focused on delivering general veterinary services to companion animals. For more information, please visit www.heartlandvetpartners.com.

About Gryphon Investors
Based in San Francisco, Gryphon Investors is a leading private equity firm focused on profitably growing and competitively enhancing middle-market companies in partnership with experienced management. The firm has managed over $5.0 billion of equity investments and capital since 1997. Gryphon targets making equity investments of $100 million to $300 million in portfolio companies with sales ranging from approximately $100 million to $500 million. Gryphon prioritizes investment opportunities where it can form strong partnerships with owners and executives to build leading companies, utilizing Gryphon’s capital, specialized professional resources, and operational expertise. For more information, please visit www.gryphon-inv.com.

About Varagon Capital Partners
Varagon is a leading lender to middle-market companies and private equity firms. Varagon invests across the capital structure and delivers flexible financing solutions that meet the needs of its private equity partners. Since inception, Varagon has made over $12.4 billion of investment commitments to over 150 middle-market companies. For more information, please visit www.varagon.com.