Carl Marks Anchors Stone-Goff Partners
Merchant Bank Forms New Partnership as it Enters its Tenth Decade
NEW YORK, October 27, 2015 – Carl Marks & Co. (“Carl Marks”), a 90-year-old merchant bank with a long history of incubating investment businesses, announced its newest partnership, with Stone-Goff Partners (“SGP”), a private equity firm that invests in consumer and services companies.
SGP is led by Hannah Stone Craven and Laurens Goff, who together have more than 40 years of relevant private equity experience. They formed SGP in 2010.
“We are impressed by Hannah, Laurens and the business they have built together over the last few years,” said Mark Claster, President of Carl Marks. “We look forward to a long and fruitful future together.”
In addition, SGP announced the closing of Stone-Goff Partners Fund II, L.P., a private equity fund that Carl Marks will anchor, and the first investment in that fund, The Greene Turtle Sports Bar & Grille (“Greene Turtle”). Founded in 1976, Greene Turtle is a family-friendly casual dining restaurant and dynamic sports bar with 41 company-owned and franchised locations in the mid-Atlantic region.
Carl Marks has been incubating investment businesses for most of its nine decades. It was an early sponsor of investors like Joseph Steinberg of Leucadia National Corporation and Jay Jordan of The Jordan Company. SGP is its second addition since Carl Marks renewed its drive last year to build more investment businesses on its platform. Its current principal investment businesses include CM Equity Partners, a private equity business focused on the U.S. Federal services and aerospace & defense sectors; Carl Marks Management Company, which manages investment funds focused on distressed credit opportunities and special situations; Capital Counsel, an investment adviser; and Sand Oak Capital, a private equity business focused on industrial and manufacturing companies. Another Carl Marks business, Carl Marks Advisors, provides corporate revitalization and investment banking services.
“I’m delighted to have Hannah, Laurens and their team on board and excited to add another new team to the Carl Marks family,” said Katherine Boas, Executive Vice President at Carl Marks and a fourth-generation family member leading its growth. “They set the bar high as we begin our tenth decade.”
About Carl Marks & Co.
Founded in 1925, Carl Marks & Co. (www.carlmarks.com) is one of the investment community’s most experienced merchant banks. The family-owned and -operated firm serves as a platform for a range of investment and advisory business. Its areas of operations include advisory services, distressed investments, investment management, private equity, real estate and new businesses. Carl Marks also serves as a growth catalyst for investment managers seeking a platform on which to build their businesses.
About Stone-Goff Partners
Stone-Goff Partners (www.stonegoff.com) is a private equity investment firm that acquires and builds companies in the lower middle market. Founded in 2010, the firm leverages the extensive investment, strategic and operational experience of its principals in the consumer and services sectors to serve as a value-added partner for its management teams, portfolio companies and limited partners.
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For more information:
Katherine Boas
kboas@carlmarks.com
Carl Marks & Co.
+1 212-909-8400
