Heartwood Partners® is pleased to announce that, on October 28, 2024, in partnership with the management team who will continue to lead the Company, it made a growth investment in Norlee Group (“Norlee” or the “Company”).
Headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, Norlee is a leading multi-brand full-service provider of mission-critical electrical, mechanical, technology, fire protection, and engineering & design services. The Company serves clients across the commercial, healthcare, infrastructure, education, government, retail, institutional, multi-family, and hospitality sectors. With a workforce of approximately 600 employees, the Company offers a comprehensive suite of electrical and mechanical services, including system engineering & design-build, in-plant service & repair, underground infrastructure, and medium-to-low voltage solutions such as access control, 5G fiber optics, communication cabling, security and energy efficiency systems.
At the time of Heartwood’s growth investmentin Norlee, the Company operarated multiple leading service providers across Central and Northern Florida, including Adkins Electric (“AEI”), Colwill Enterprises (“CEI”), Millennium Electric (“MEI”), and Tietjen Technologies (“TTI”). Heartwood has partnered with the Norlee team, led by Wally Budgell, Norlee’s founder and CEO, to support the Company’s continued growth. Since the investment, the Company has completed three strategic acquisitions to further expand its service capabilities and strengthen its presence in core markets: (1) AEC Electrical (“AEC”), a Jacksonville, FL-based provider of data & communication cabling, electrical & energy management, and maintenance & repairs serving educational, commercial, and industrial clients; (2) Regency Electric Company (“RE”), a Jacksonville, FL-based provider of electrical design/build, building information modeling (“BIM”), and on-site support & inspections services across the healthcare, commercial, sports & entertainment, and hospitality sectors; and (3) Allstate Electric (“AE”), a Jacksonville, FL-based provider of electrical and underground services serving commercial and industrial clients.
“We are delighted to partner with Wally and the rest of the Norlee team to continue executing on their vision of establishing the Company as a trusted leader in integrated electrical and mechanical solutions across the Southeastern U.S.,” said Demetrios Dounis, Managing Partner, Heartwood Partners. “Norlee is a fantastic fit for Heartwood’s model of backing strong management teams and applying our low-leverage strategy and growth-focused approach. The Norlee team has a track record of success, and we’re excited to help them execute and accelerate their growth strategy.”
“Our partnership with Heartwood Partners marks an exciting new chapter in Norlee’s growth journey,” said Wally Budgell, CEO of Norlee. “Since founding Norlee, we’ve been committed to building a comprehensive platform of best-in-class service providers across the Southeastern U.S. Heartwood’s investment approach aligns perfectly with our vision – they understand the value of maintaining operational excellence while providing the strategic resources and capital needed to accelerate our expansion. The successful completion of three acquisitions in less than a year following our partnership demonstrates the strength of this partnership.”
Please contact the following members of the investment team at Heartwood Partners with investment or add-on opportunities:
Demetrios Dounis | Managing Partner
John Willert | Partner
jwillert@heartwoodpartners.com
John Newman | Managing Director
James Jang | Principal
Drew Greene | Senior Associate