Waterfall, TRP Capital Partners Invest in Truck Rental Firm Flex Fleet

Flex Fleet Rental, a Salt Lake City company that provides commercial truck rentals, is receiving financial backing from Waterfall Asset Management and TRP Capital Partners to expand its business and establish a national presence.

CEO Michael Kraupp and Vice President Brian Goldhardt started the business in 2013 with backing from Synterra Capital Management.

“We are excited to partner with Waterfall and TRP, which share our vision of providing first-class service to our customers, and that will support our ongoing investment in tools and technology to continually augment our capabilities,” Kraupp said in a statement regarding the new investment deal.

Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Flex Fleet specializes in renting light- and medium-duty trucks, flatbed trucks and vans on a month-to-month basis and claims to have hundreds of customers.

“We believe that Flex Fleet’s approach to service and the depth of its infrastructure will continue to differentiate the company in the marketplace,” said Steve Carrel, a managing director of TRP Capital Partners.

TRP Capital Partners is a private equity investment firm backed, in part, by Penske Corp. and is based in Bloomfield, Mich. The firm targets businesses in the transportation sector. It previously has invested in truck and automobile dealerships, technical and driver training schools, truck lighting and home delivery logistics service providers.

New York-based Waterfall Asset Management is an investment advisory firm founded in 2005 by Tom Capasse and Jack Ross to handle high-yield, asset-based securities and loan investments. In 2017, the firm hired Gene Weil and John Nelligan to oversee private equity investments in financial and technology areas.

In commenting on Flex Fleet, Weil said Waterfall Asset Management is looking to support the company’s long-term growth strategy.

Waterfall has approximately $7.7 billion in assets under management.