For three years before helping Death Wish Coffee (DWC) launch its new strategic investment partnership with one of the largest and most experienced global growth private equity firms, the Schwartz Heslin Group (SHG) had been providing the upstart coffee brand with a wide array of strategic advisory and valuation services. It’s a relationship that took off at a whole other kind of launch.
On June 28, 2018, DWC hosted a special event celebrating the inclusion of its coffee in a care package being shipped to the astronauts aboard the International Space Station. SHG staff took the opportunity to drop by and make an introduction.
A Lot More Than Just a Valuation
“My initial purpose for having a valuation performed was to establish a base for an equity plan that I hoped to develop for my employees,” Mike says. “But I got a lot more out of the valuation than just a number to value my business. SHG Managing Director Cory Martin and his team educated me on how companies were valued and showed me what metrics were essential to further growth. They also performed an in-depth industry analysis to help identify growth opportunities.”
Cory remembers those initial conversations well. “Mike was managing extremely high growth after the Super Bowl commercial. He was managing new staff, bringing in new leaders, scaling up the business. I think what really resonated was just that … he was experiencing amazing growth, but he needed to manage the risks of that growth or else it would effectively implode on him.”
“I don’t approach a valuation as just a number,” Cory says, “It’s not just a benchmark, but a very valuable tool to help you manage your growth.” For example, SHG’s analysis for DWC included market and peer-to-peer performance and infrastructure comparisons to help the company normalize its operations, identify weaknesses and develop a strategic plan for the future.
Guiding The Way to a Strategic Investment Partnership
After three years of engaging SHG in valuation analysis and other advisory services, Mike decided the time was right to seek the strategic outside investment necessary to take DWC to the next level of growth. Death Wish retained the services of SHG to manage the entire process from the identification and selection of a strategic investment partner to negotiating the final deal.
In the fall of 2021, after a highly accelerated nine-week process, DWC finalized its investment partnership with TA Associates, one of the world’s largest and most experienced global growth private equity firms.
“When it comes to what SHG offers our clients, our relationship with Death Wish has been textbook,” Cory says. “We have taken them along the path of all of our service offerings and we’re excited to see this next phase of growth with TA as a strategic partner.”
