Student Life - Growth Financing
The Transaction:
Founders Investment Banking, LLC acted as exclusive financial advisor to secure a round of growth financing for Student Life, Inc.
The Company:
Headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, Student Life is a Christian events company that offers week-long ministry experiences to young adults across the United States. The events are intended for 7th-12th grade students and take the form of recreational camps, mission trips, beach camps, and Church Connect, which is geared toward church youth groups. Since the first Student Life event in 1993, the company’s customer base has grown tremendously to include over 65,000 event participants and approximately 10,500 churches.
The Situation/Need:
In 2010, Founders advised Student Life Founder and President, Randy Hall, on strategic alternatives for the business and ministry. Ultimately, the company decided to enter into a strategic relationship whereby it sold its publishing assets to NavPress in order to focus on its core business of hosting world class Christian events. In support of that objective, Student Life again hired Founders to raise a significant round of growth capital in order to expand their customer base and provide ministry experiences to an ever increasing number of participants. Service companies like Student Life often encounter difficulty raising new capital, because they have few tangible assets and must rely only on historically strong operating results to guarantee repayment of any debt.
The Solution:
In 60 days, Founders got up to speed on Student Life’s operations since the 2010 transaction, brought in a private investor at a favorable interest rate, and coordinated the due diligence and closing process. In fulfillment of the Student Life engagement, the Founders process accomplished the following objectives:
- Quickly got up to speed on recent operating performance
- Brought a private investor to bear in a timely manner
- Secured favorable terms on financing to foster profitable growth
- Coordinated the drafting and execution of the necessary legal documents
- Quarterbacked the due diligence and closing process
- Minimized distractions to management so they could focus on operations
