Hanover Deals Handi Quilter

Hanover Partners, the West Coast private equity firm, has sold its Handi Quilter Inc. to a middle market private equity firm in New York. Specifics of the deal, as well as the buyer, were not publicized. Hanover is exiting its acquisition after buying it in 2008; Tuckerman Capital, and the private equity firm, generated a 2x gross cash on cash return and a 34% IRR.

PRESS RELEASE:

Hanover Partners, Inc. announced the sale of its portfolio company, Handi Quilter, Inc., the leading
manufacturer of branded quilting machines, portable frames/tables, computerized quilting systems,
and quilting accessories, to a middle-market private equity firm in New York, NY.
Headquartered in North Salt Lake, UT, Handi Quilter’s products are sold globally and primarily used
in the home by dedicated quilting enthusiasts as well as by quilters with home-based businesses.
Founded in 2001, the company serves a niche consumer demographic and has grown rapidly to
become one of the largest manufacturers of quilting machines in the world as well as one of the most
recognized brands in the industry. The exit from Handi Quilter generated a 2x gross cash-on-cash
return and 34% internal rate-of-return for lead investors Hanover Partners and Tuckerman Capital,
during just under a 3 year investment period.
Based in San Francisco, California and Portland, Oregon, Hanover Partners acquired Handi Quilter in
December 2008 in partnership with Tuckerman Capital III, L.P. of Hanover, NH, CEO Mark Hyland,
and COO & CFO Darren Denning. Commenting at the transaction’s closing, John E. Palmer, Co-
Founding Principal with Hanover Partners and former Chairman of the Board, stated “We are
extremely pleased with this highly-successful outcome for all shareholders, particularly in the context
of significant growth during the economic downturn. It is rare to partner with such a talented
management team as Mark Hyland and Darren Denning and it has been a pleasure working with them.
I am confident Handi Quilter will continue its industry leading position under their leadership.”
“We appreciate the support of Hanover Partners and look forward to continuing to build the Handi
Quilter brand,” said Handi Quilter’s CEO Mark Hyland. “We have experienced considerable growth
during the last 3 years and are excited at the next step in the company’s evolution.” Additionally,
Darren Denning, COO & CFO of Handi Quilter, commented “We plan to continue developing
innovative quilting machine products and accessories for our customers. This transaction allows
Handi Quilter to further capitalize on the numerous opportunities ahead.”
Founded in 1994, Hanover Partners, Inc. is a private equity firm with offices in Portland, OR and San
Francisco, CA. Hanover and its institutional partners acquire majority positions in lower middlemarket
niche manufacturers with proprietary, highly engineered, standard products, as well as
consumer products and business services companies, with operating income of at least $1.5 million
and operating margins exceeding 10%. With the exit from Handi Quilter, Hanover’s current portfolio
now consists of 5 unique companies located across the United States.
The sale of Handi Quilter is Hanover’s second successful realization in 2011. This past May, Hanover
sold its former portfolio company, Solidscape, Inc. to Stratasys (NASDAQ: SSYS) for a 2.5x cash-oncash
gain.
Web site contact information:
www.hanoverpartners.com
www.handiquilter.com