Cascadia Capital Closes a Strategic Acquisition that Extended a Large Consolidator in the Data Management Space

Challenge

Dantz Development, a Walnut Creek, CA-based provider of backup and restore software for small and medium-sized businesses, engaged Cascadia Capital to assist the company in evaluating its strategic alternatives and recommend the company's most viable option. Cascadia Capital was selected because of its strong relationships among a broad base of potential buyers and investors. Dantz also liked Cascadia Capital's rich domain expertise within the storage and broader network infrastructure sectors. At the time of initial engagement, Dantz's founders and board members had not fully evaluated potential liquidity events or timing for the company.

Solution

Cascadia Capital engaged in an in-depth analysis of Dantz's strategic alternatives and came to the conclusion that a sale of the company represented the most viable exit. Cascadia Capital then accessed its public company relationships to "soft test" the market and determine the window for a potential M&A event. This analysis led to the determination of an imminent exit window for Dantz. Upon receiving approval from Dantz's founders and investors, Cascadia Capital then engaged in a competitive sell-side M&A process.

Results

Cascadia Capital delivered strong strategic interest from industry leaders in the storage and the broader network infrastructure universe, resulting in multiple competing term sheets. The company ultimately chose EMC, the world leader in storage and information management, based on the platform opportunity it would afford Dantz and its stakeholders.