Hartford Business Journal

HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | OCTOBER 28, 2024 19 relationship with the president and CEO, and then he was replaced. So now we've got to figure out who the new person is, and how the state can build a great relationship with the new person," Lavoie said. At the same time, he says at the operating level — where the state is working with Kaman on issues such as workforce development and the supply chain — he's confident of seeing continuity. Lavoie, too, is a proponent of the additional investment Connecticut companies are seeing from private equity, and the dynamic such deals create, which he says tend to make businesses more "mission-driven." Meaningful liquidity At Carter Morse & Goodrich, a Southport-based boutique mergers and acquisitions advisory firm, Managing Partner Ramsey Goodrich sees the change that these deals bring from the ground floor. "Private equity funds, despite what most of the press vilifies them for, in our experience in the middle market, really come in to invest more," he said. "They hire more people, they hire more management, they make the right investments and invest in capex and growth." It's his job to make sure his client compa- nies find the right match in the private equity marketplace. They're squarely in Connecticut's old economy sectors of manufacturing, aerospace, distribution and business services, many of them with multi- generational family ties. "Most of our clients, like most business owners, are really good at making a widget, really good at producing a product or providing a service," he said. "But almost none of them have ever sold their business before." But what's changed, over his decades in the business, is the number of choices his clients have. Back when he started, there were maybe 100 private equity firms in the marketplace. Now there are in excess of 6,700. That proliferation of private capital is causing what's been termed an economic megatrend — the shift away from publicly held stock. In fact, since 2012, the number of private equity-owned companies in the U.S. has exceeded the number of publicly traded ones. Goodrich isn't surprised. "A lot of folks love this private equity option and what it means, because I can have the best of both worlds," he said. "I can create a meaningful amount of liquidity, but still have an operating role going forward. And, I maybe have an equity stake in the company going forward as well." As the sheer number of private equity firms has ballooned, the firms themselves have become more specialized in certain sectors. And so, when Goodrich is looking for a likely match for a client, he says his universe is limited to private equity investors that can bring real exper- tise to bear in the industry at hand. "If you find the right partner, a really smart, dedicated partner that brings resources to the company, private equity can be magical," he said. On the other hand, "if you get in bed with the wrong partner, it's a disaster. It's guaranteed to be a disaster." Discerning the difference, he says, is about knowing what the company needs, in terms of management skill, sales and marketing, operations and growth. "Everybody's money is green. Not the problem," he said. Instead, the question is, "what does part- nership look like to you? What do I need? The investor has to have experience in solving your problem in your industry. Do they share your vision?" expected when private equity steps in. "When they first acquire a Barnes or Kaman, they use them as a platform for growth, where they acquire other companies that either are vertically integrated or somehow have some synergies that can accelerate that growth," he said. He said what he's monitoring is Apollo's future plans for Barnes. "What in Connecticut are they going to invest in? What's their direction as far as future growth, both organically and through acqui- sition?" he said. He believes the implications for the state are largely positive because of the increased invest- ment. But he notes that it's a signif- icant culture change, particularly around a company like Barnes Group, which, while it had been publicly traded for some 50 years, still had significant involvement from generations of the same family that has shown long-term commitment to the Connecticut manufacturing ecosystem. Paul Lavoie, the state's chief manufacturing officer, shares those concerns with the recent change in leadership at Kaman. "At Kaman, we built a really good Chris DiPentima Ramsey Goodrich Donny Marshall Charity Classic Shows Its Medals. On behalf of the 2024 Donny Marshall Charity Classic and 21st Century Tolland Fund congratulations to 2024 Paris Paralympics Medal winners Sydney Satchell and Matt Torres for showing their medals and helping our other adaptive athletes reach their peaks. Save The Date: Aug. 10-11, 2025 Sydney Satchell (left), our 2017 Scholarship Winner, Gold Medal winner in Sitting Volleyball at the 2024 Paralympics in Paris; and Matt Torres (left), our 2018 Scholarship Winner, won Bronze Medal Winner in swimming at the 2024 Paralympics. Paul Lavoie

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