Brentwood Associates (“Brentwood”) announces the commitment of up to $100 million of equity capital for the creation of Brightrose Software (“Brightrose”) to acquire and operate successful mid-market and enterprise software businesses. Brightrose will focus on companies with a track record of product success and long-term customer relationships. Brightrose is formed in partnership with software executive Davin Cushman. Mr. Cushman, CEO of Brightrose, is a software industry veteran having held numerous leadership positions, most recently serving as the CEO of privately held Ignite Technologies, a leading provider of a large suite of enterprise software solutions built through acquisition.
“Mr. Cushman brings a strong track record and an excellent operating model for enhancing customer value through targeted product strategy, differentiated customer success programs and a modern, global talent platform,” said Craig Milius, Partner at Brentwood.
Brightrose’s 2021 acquisitions will be growing US or Canadian businesses delivering SaaS products that are firmly embedded within its customers’ business processes. The ideal Brightrose acquisition is one for which a more global and higher scale model for operations is additive to profitable growth.
“The partnership with Brentwood is a unique opportunity,” said Mr. Cushman. “Brentwood has not only made a significant capital commitment but will also provide deep operational support in a variety of areas strategic to our ability to both acquire and strengthen quality software companies.”
Jonathan Berkowitz, Operating Partner at Brentwood, continued, “We’re thrilled to launch Brightrose with a deep focus on investing in customer success and scaling through acquisitions. Together, we plan to build a differentiated platform with an ever-expanding value proposition.”
About Davin Cushman
Davin Cushman is a 25-year veteran of the software industry, starting his career in 1996 with enterprise application pioneer Trilogy. Mr. Cushman’s Trilogy experience included working directly with Trilogy’s founder on strategies for inspiring innovation from some of the world’s most talented engineers and entrepreneurs. Mr. Cushman’s professional experience also includes roles in operations and workforce strategy with Capital One, a company executing with a powerful, founder-led culture. Most recently, Mr. Cushman completed a 10+ year stint as CEO of Ignite Technologies, a privately held enterprise software company under which Mr. Cushman completed more than 40 mergers and acquisitions of small to mid-sized software companies.
About Brentwood Associates
Brentwood Associates is a Los Angeles-based private equity investment firm with a 30+ year history of investing in middle-market growth-oriented consumer and technology-enabled business services companies. Since 1984, Brentwood’s dedicated private equity team has invested in over 50 portfolio companies with an aggregate transaction value of over $6 billion. Brentwood is a value-added partner for entrepreneurs and senior management teams building world-class companies. For more information about Brentwood, please visit www.brentwood.com.