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TSG’s Mike Layman: consumer M&A has turned a corner; Agellus launches fire safety platform

Good morning, PE Hubsters! Rafael Canton here with the US edition of the Wire from the New York newsroom.

Let’s begin with a look at the consumer sector. We have insights from Michael Layman, managing director at TSG Consumer Partners,on the dealmaking environment in the consumer sector and the conversation around tariffs and its affect on dealmaking.

Then, we have a deal from this morning. Agellus Capital has formed Bluejack Fire & Life Safety, a life and safety acquisition platform. The platform is combined from three companies.

Finally, we have a digital infrastructure industry update in Q4 from Houlihan Lokey that highlights data center activity.

Turning the corner

Dealmaking has been slow across sectors to begin 2025. However, dealmaking in the consumer sector could pick up. PE Hub caught up with Michael Layman, managing director at TSG Consumer Partners, to learn about trends in the consumer services sector and what the conversation has been around tariffs for dealmakers in the consumer sector.

Subscribe to the premium version of the Wire to read Layman’s thoughts on the consumer sector.

Safety combination

Agellus Capital has formed Bluejack Fire & Life Safety, a life and safety acquisition platform. The launch of the newly formed company comes from Agellus’ recent acquisitions, Texas-based FirePro Tech LLC, New York-based Chase Fire, and California-based AAA Fire Protection Services.

PE Hub has been following dealmaking in the fire and safety industry. In January, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and GIC acquired minority stakes in Pye-Barker, an Atlanta-based provider of commercial fire protection services. The company’s existing backer Leonard Green & Partners invested significant new capital into Pye-Barker while existing backer Altas Partners retained the majority of its ownership stake.

PE Hub previously covered Pye-Barker’s sale process. Last summer, LGP and Altas were expected to launch a marketing process to gauge buyout interest in Pye-Barker, sources told PE Hub. And last fall, sources told PE Hub that LGP and Altas had advanced bidders to the second round of a sale process for Pye-Barker.

Premium subscribers can read more about the deal from Agellus this morning.

Pooling capital

The increased interest in GPU (graphics processing unit) cloud platforms and investors pooling capital together are a couple of recent trends that have stood out according to Houlihan Lokey’s digital infrastructure industry update in Q4.

Subscribe to the premium version of the Wire to gain access to the report and read my takeaways on the digital infrastructure industry update.

If you have any questions, thoughts, or want to chat about deals in the tech, consumer or sports sectors, please email me at [email protected].

Tomorrow, Nina Lindholm will be with you for the Europe edition of the Wire and Michael Schoeck will bring you the US edition.

Cheers,

Rafael

Read the full Wire commentary on PE Hub ...

Also of note (may require subscriptions)

Montagu Private Equity is gearing up to fuel Multifonds’ growth by expanding its product offerings for existing clients while tapping into new markets – especially in Asia, Latin America and Europe – where demand for such financial software products remains strong, Jan Stypulkowski and Daniel Fischer, Frankfurt-based partners at Montagu, told PE Hub.

Gresham House readies itself for a big year in biodiversity: The fund manager has spent the last 12-months bedding itself into England’s biodiversity net gain market and is now ready to hit the fundraising trail hard. (Agri Investor)

Ara Partners, a decarbonization-focused private markets firm, has raised $507 million for its first infrastructure fund, according to New Private Markets data. The firm has yet to hold a final close, but has surpassed its $500 million target.

Barings’ agreement to acquire value-add specialist Artemis Real Estate Partners creates a combined $60 billion real estate behemoth that is well-suited to reap the benefits of a US market recovery. On the latest episode of The PERE Podcast, PEI Group real estate editor-in-chief Jonathan Brasse and PERE EMEA editor Charlotte D’Souza break down the deal, how Barings and Artemis fit together and what it all means for private real estate’s road ahead.

HarbourVest Partners, the world’s fifth-largest secondaries investor according to the SI 50, has emerged as lead for Graham Partners’ single-asset continuation vehicle, Secondaries Investor has learned.

Apollo Global Management’s secondaries capabilities will receive a boost, with the listed alternatives giant agreeing to acquire Salt Lake City-based real estate investment manager Bridge Investment Group. (Secondaries Investor)

(PERE also had its take on the deal from the real estate side, as mentioned in yesterday's "Also of note" section.)

Deals

They said it

“There was a long period of time when people said: It's going to pick up in a few months. My sense is that we have turned the corner.”

— Michael Layman, managing director at TSG Consumer Partners on dealmaking in the consumer sector for 2025

Today's letter was prepared by Rafael Canton

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