Wind Point Partners Acquires A&R Logistics

New Owner Plans to Expand Business, Make More Acquisitions
A&R Logistics
An A&R Logistics truck. (John Sommers II for Transport Topics)

Wind Point Partners, a Chicago-based private equity investment firm, has acquired A&R Logistics and will partner with management to expand the company’s business and make additional acquisitions, according to a statement issued May 7.

A&R Logistics has been owned by Mason Wells, a Milwaukee investment firm, since 2012 and is headed by CEO Mark Holden.

Terms were not disclosed.

Based in Louisville, Ky., A&R Logistics specializes in hauling dry bulk commodities for producers and distributors of chemicals and plastics with a network of 50 terminals and warehouses in the United States, and a fleet of 858 company-owned and owner-operator tractors and 1,095 specialized and pneumatic trailers.



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“We are thrilled to partner with Mark Holden and the A&R team as they lead the company into a new phase of growth,” said Konrad Salaber, managing director at Wind Point. “We look forward to supporting a robust value creation plan that includes expanding A&R’s domestic infrastructure, aggressively growing export supply chain solutions in the ports of Charleston and Savannah and completing acquisitions to enhance the company’s scale and scope of service.”

Holden said he is excited to have Wind Point as a partner. “We see significant opportunities ahead for our company, customers, employees and partners as we grow the business organically and through acquisition,” he said.

The growth strategy for A&R Logistics includes the addition of 2 million square feet of distribution space to support packaging and export of plastic resins through the ports in Charleston, S.C., and Savannah, Ga., Holden said.

Acquisitions, he said, will focus on companies that provide dry bulk transportation and warehousing services, plus complementary offerings, such as liquid chemical transportation and supply chain services.

A&R Logistics ranks No. 95 on the Transport Topics Top 100 list of largest for-hire carriers in North America with revenue of $259.4 million in 2017.

Wind Point targets investments in consumer products, industrial products and business services sectors, and has about $2 billion in assets under management.

Other transportation-related companies in Wind Point’s investment portfolio include Dicom Transportation, acquired in 2014, and St. George Logistics, acquired in 2016.