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Helios Capital brings to the table a proven track record of success. The combination of our entrepreneurial backgrounds and operator experience with the Helios Integral Investment Approach has generated outperforming returns while developing Companies that Matter™.

Every partner company is a new opportunity, and we are continually energized to develop undiscovered value and potential to develop companies with long-term sustainable profitability and those that impact their people, their communities, and the market at large positively.
The following are summary descriptions of a sampling of investments in which the Helios Principals were significantly involved with prior to or concurrently with the formation of Helios Capital.

AD&P

AD&P was a services company in the construction field.

Ameriserv

AmeriServ Food Company was a leading foodservice distributor.

American Crop Services, Inc.

American Crop Services provided outsourced fertilizer and chemical application and spraying services as well as operated 32 “super farm centers” that retailed agricultural inputs.

Belding Hausman

Belding Hausman manufactures specialty textiles; primarily drapery and home furnishing fabrics that require quick turnaround for retailers, like JC Penney and Target, who have JIT inventory programs.

BillMatrix

BillMatrix Corporation is a leading provider of outsourced electronic bill payment services.

Compare Apple

Compare Apple is completely focused on serving the consumer with the most up-to-date information and deals for loans, debt, medical, business services, and real estate.

Envision Gaming Technologies

Envision is a leading developer and manufacturer of electronic games for casinos.

Fresh America Corp

Fresh America Corp., with over $600 million in revenues, provided procurement, processing, repacking, warehousing and distribution services of fresh produce and other refrigerated products for a wide variety of customers in the retail, food service and food distribution businesses.

Hammerman & Gainer (H&G)

Hammerman & Gainer (H&G) is a third party administrator (TPA) providing workers’ compensation claims administration for insurance companies and self-insured clients. H&G also provides risk management consulting, investigation, and multi-line insurance adjusting

Instaff Personnel

InStaff is a leading staffing services company providing temporary employees to light industrial manufacturers and distributors.

JPG

JPG was a full-service marketing agency and customer relationship management firm.

Logex Corporation

Logex served as the nation’s largest independent, over-the-road carrier of cryogenic liquids and compressed gases.

Mango Network

Mango Network provided hosted world-class software for specific vertical markets through a software-as-a-service (SaaS) model.

Mission Valley Textiles

Mission Valley Textiles was a preeminent, vertically-integrated manufacturer and marketer of textile products for the apparel and home fashions markets.

PrimeSource FoodService Equipment, Inc.

PrimeSource is one of the nation's leading turnkey providers for all of a restaurant's equipment and hardware needs.

RabidPop

The RabidPop is a localized online video community providing a voice and identity for teenagers across America.

South America For Less

South America For Less and its subsidiaries form the leading Progressive Tourism firm with a focus solely on South America and a complete price guarantee.

Sun Engine & Transmission Sales, Inc.

Sun Engine was the largest remanufacturer of domestic and foreign automobile engines in the United States.

Synapse Group, Inc.

The Synapse Group was a leading Internet agency working with customers like Hilton Hotels, American Airlines, and Mary Kay Incorporated to build interactive web sites with transaction-processing capabilities.

Trycos Software:

Trycos developed and sold integration software products that allowed manufacturing and distribution firms to enable their Enterprise Resource Planning Management Systems (“ERP”) for eCommerce.

Vasana Media

Vasana Media is focused on being the leading digital, high-definition video firm.

Yellow Checker Cab Company of Dallas/Fort Worth:

Yellow Cab is the result of a roll-up of seven taxicab operations in the North Texas Area. Today, the Company is the leader in its marketplace and one of the five largest taxi operations in the Nation with more than 1,100 cars in its fleet.

PORTFOLIO

Fresh America Corp., with over $600 million in revenues, provided procurement, processing, repacking, warehousing and distribution services of fresh produce and other refrigerated products for a wide variety of customers in the retail, food service and food distribution businesses. Additional services such as “just-in-time” inventory planning, supply-chain integration, and worldwide sourcing were also provided as areas of unique specialization.

Type of Transaction: Restructuring

Integral Value:
Because of the perishable nature of fresh fruits and vegetables, distribution requirements in this sector are more precise requiring in-depth expertise for the entire supply chain. Fresh America specialized in maintaining the “cold chain” of distribution to ensure safety, quality and yield for the wide variety of products available in today’s marketplace. As one of the largest distributors of fresh produce in North America; the Company served over 3,000 customers through eight distribution facilities located in Arlington and Houston, Texas; Atlanta, Georgia; Scranton and Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania; Richmond, Indiana; Chicago, Illinois and Los Angeles, California.

Helios invested $6.9 million to acquire a controlling stake in this publicly-traded company in August of 2001 and executed an operational turnaround. The Company had lost its largest customer, WalMart, when WalMart’s management made the strategic decision to “insource” their produce sourcing and distribution. Despite a well-researched strategic plan to restore Fresh America to operating profitability, we made several strategic missteps in an unstable business environment that was impacted by declining commodity prices. After a year and half of steadfast efforts to effectuate a turnaround, the operating issues became insurmountable and we elected to sell the assets of the company to a strategic buyer, Dimare Produce. While the proceeds of this sale were not adequate to return capital to us, we were able satisfy all of Fresh America’s creditors. Furthermore, we minimized the sales impact on the company’s workforce. Today, the company’s operations exist as Dimare Fresh.

Revenue: $600 million
Sector: Value-Added Distribution
Partnering Date: August 2001
Status: Exit – January 2003 – No Return on Equity
Website: www.dimarefresh.com

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