Hicks Plastics Co. has been acquired by Sea Link International, a private equity-backed company based in Largo, Florida.
Hicks Plastics is a Tier II provider of injection-molded and metallized automotive forward lighting components headquartered in Macomb, with a secondary facility located in Knoxville, Tennessee. Sea Link is a portfolio company of Boca Raton, Florida-based New Water Capital LP. Financial terms were not disclosed.
The acquisition, which represents the fourth addition to New Water Capital's automotive lighting platform, is expected to bolster Sea Link's domestic manufacturing and assembly capabilities and allow Sea Link to better serve its customers across the automotive spectrum.
"Hicks' technical acumen and its long-standing reputation for quality and customer service, combined with its manufacturing footprint ideally located in the automotive hubs of Michigan and Tennessee, make it a perfect fit for our growing lighting platform," New Water Capital Partner Brian McGee said in a statement.
Tim Hicks, a second-generation owner of Hicks Plastics, will join Sea Link as a vice president, while continuing to serve as president of Hicks Plastics and oversee its day-to-day operations.
Sea Link President and CEO Eric Showalter added: "The addition of Hicks Plastics to our automotive lighting platform will allow us to further integrate Sea Link's in-house manufacturing and assembly capabilities. This important acquisition will give us increased flexibility and capacity to respond quickly and nimbly to changing market, political and economic conditions."
New Water Capital first invested in the automotive lighting design and manufacturing sector with the March 2016 recapitalization of Sea Link International, a provider of design support and manufacturer of high-precision automotive lighting components servicing global Tier 1 and OEM customers.
Myotek Industries, a leading Tier 1 OEM transportation LED lighting designer, manufacturer and supplier, was added to New Water's portfolio in October 2017. In November 2018, Sea Link acquired Amptech Inc., a leading value-added manufacturer of electronics and electrical assemblies based in Manistee.
Hicks Plastics was represented in the transaction by MBS Advisors of Florence, Massachusetts. Joining Sea Link as financial sponsors of the deal were McLean, Virginia-based Gladstone Capital and San Francisco-based Castle Crow & Co., according to PitchBook.
