A Regional Company Transforms Into Not One, But Two Category Leaders - Accel-KKR Case Study

Transaction Highlights

Over an eight-year partnership with Accel-KKR, TrueCommerce (originally known as Accellos) transformed itself from a middle-of-the-pack, regional player with a mix of supply chain and business connectivity software into a holding company serving a list of well-recognized customers including Siemens, Danone and Hubbell.

Key Facts

• Year of Investment: 2018
• Status: Current
• Migration from On-Premise to Subscription Model
• M&A Program
• Two Successful Exits

Business Overview

Accellos Holdings was founded in Colorado Springs by three friends and colleagues: Mike Cornell, Flint Seaton and Ross Elliott.

At the time of Accel-KKR’s investment in 2012, Accellos Holdings served small- and medium-sized businesses with warehouse management software, logistics management software (e.g., trucking software) and business connectivity software (connecting ERP systems to EDI networks).

Accel-KKR helped us achieve more than we ever dreamt of on our own.

Mike Cornell

Co-Founder & Former CEO

Results

During the investment period, TrueCommerce grew revenues and profitability.

• In 2017, HighJump was sold to Körber AG, a strategic acquirer based in Germany.
• In late 2020, TrueCommerce was sold to Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe. Accel-KKR currently retains a minority stake in the company.
• The three founding leaders were still the top three executives at the time of exit.
• TrueCommerce is one of the largest technology companies in Pittsburgh today.
• Accel-KKR established The Elliott Award in honor of co-founder Ross Elliott, recognizing the CEO within our portfolio for his or her exemplary spirit of servant leadership.

Value Created

Between 2012 and 2020, Accellos worked closely with Accel-KKR to drive organic and inorganic growth, and dramatically transformed its business along the way:

Migration

Underwent a significant strategic undertaking to migrate the business from an on-premise and license model to a full SaaS hosted delivery and subscription model.

Pricing

Implemented a new pricing strategy.

M&A

Embarked on a large M&A program spanning nearly a dozen add-ons during the investment period.

Competitor Acquisition

Acquired a competitor (HighJump Software) that was more than three times the size of Accellos’s business. HighJump served the higher end of the warehouse management software market, and also had a strong B2B EDI network to complement Accellos’s product suite.

Reorganization

Reorganized into two businesses, which brought organizational focus and clear market positioning.