The Branford Team Has Received Many Industry Awards

  • 2024 M&A Advisor’s 15th Annual Emerging Leaders Award – Marilyn Yang
  • 2023 M&A Advisor Leadership Award – John S. Castle
  • 2020 M&A Advisor’s 11th Annual Emerging Leaders Award – Ceon Francis
  • 2020 Global M&A Network Rising Star Dealmaker – Ceon Francis
  • 2019 M&A Private Equity International Deal of the Year ($10-100 million)

HIGHLIGHTS

January 10, 2025

Branford Castle Acquires Eastern Dental Management, a Leading Dental Services Organization, from Staple Street Capital

NEW YORK, NY and BOCA RATON, FL – January 10, 2025 – Branford Castle Partners, a North American-focused private equity firm, today announced that it has acquired Eastern Dental Management (the “Company”), a leading dental services organization, from an affiliate managed by Staple Street Capital. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Eastern Dental marks the eighth and likely final platform investment and fourteenth acquisition overall for Branford Castle’s Fund II, which closed in 2021. In the second half of 2024, Branford Castle also acquired Hoffman Engineering, Testek Solutions and Alzet Osmotic Pumps (a bolt-on to Lafayette Instrument). Further, it announced the successful exits of its investments in Clean Solutions Group and Earthlite Massage Tables.

With 20 locations throughout New Jersey, Eastern Dental is a long-standing and established leader in the state. Since its inception in 1978, the Company has developed a strong brand reputation with customers and numerous payors. Eastern Dental’s CEO, Ray Iannaccone, MD, along with the rest of the existing management team, will remain with the Company going forward.

Eric Korsten, Senior Managing Director at Branford Castle, said, “We are excited to partner with Ray and the entire Eastern Dental team. For over a decade, we have seen attractive opportunities for growth in the dental services market. We believe that the Company’s leading and highly established position in New Jersey, along with its diverse mix of general and specialized dentistry services, make it a terrific platform for growth.”

Mr. Iannaccone added, “Today’s milestone is a validation of our customer-focused culture as well as our great team of dentists, specialists, hygienists and support staff. We want to thank the team at Staple Street Capital for their partnership and support, which have been instrumental in helping us achieve operational excellence and best-in-class standards for patient satisfaction. We are excited to build on this strong foundation and look forward to our new partnership with Branford Castle as we pursue future growth opportunities together.”

The partners at Staple Street Capital said, “We are proud of the Eastern Dental team’s accomplishments and deeply appreciate their contributions to the business’s success. As a result of our partnership together, we were able to foster a patient-and provider-centric culture, and invest in the Company’s people, processes and systems to drive a self-sustaining cycle of continuous improvement which positions the Company for long-term success. We are confident that the Company will continue to thrive as part of the Branford Castle family of companies.”

Ceon Francis, Managing Director at Branford Castle, said, “This important transaction would not have been possible without our long-time financing partner, Siguler Guff & Company, whose continued support of our growing portfolio is greatly valued.”

Branford Castle was advised by its legal counsel, Akerman LLP, and RSM served as its accounting/tax advisor. Staple Street Capital and Eastern Dental were advised by Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP and Polsinelli as legal counsel. Lincoln International LLC acted as the exclusive financial advisor to Staple Street Capital in connection with the sale of Eastern Dental, its portfolio company. Siguler Guff & Company is providing unitranche debt capital and equity for the transaction.

Management Team

JOHN S. CASTLE

Position: President & CEO
Phone: Investment Committee Member
Categories: sidebar, team

John S. Castle is responsible for managing Branford, including all activities of the Branford funds. Mr. Castle is and has been a Board member of various companies owned by Branford, including Carmel Car and Limousine Service, Earthlite Massage Tables, Vitrek, and Titan Production Equipment. Prior to joining Branford in 2002, he was a Director of Business Development at Airwave Wireless (an Idealab! Company, the leading Internet incubator in the early 2000’s). Prior to that, he was an Analyst, M&A at Dillon Read & Co. John S. Castle received an A.B. from Harvard College, where he was a John Harvard Scholar (top annual academic achievement) and Cum Laude graduate. He also started at running back on the Harvard football team. He received an M.B.A. from the Harvard Business School. He was also a member of the Board of Trustees of the Riverdale Country School in New York City, and is a Trustee of the Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of New York.

JOHN S. CASTLE

President & CEO

John S. Castle is responsible for managing Branford, including all...

DAVID CASTLE

Position: Managing Partner
Phone: Investment Committee Member
Categories: sidebar, team

Mr. Castle’s primary responsibilities are deal execution, post-acquisition oversight and fund administration. Mr. Castle is and has been a board member of various companies owned by Branford. Prior to joining Branford in 1996, he was a Regional Director for Santa Fe Steakhouse, a casual themed restaurant chain headquartered in Ohio. Prior to that, he was a Risk Management Specialist with GE Capital/Monogram Bank. David Castle received a B.A. from Skidmore College (Phi Beta Kappa) and a J.D. from the Cornell Law School with a concentration in business law and regulation. David Castle is licensed to practice law in the state of New York. He is a member of the Big Apple Gold Chapter of the Young Presidents’ Organization. Mr. Castle has been a member of the Board of Trustees of Skidmore College and a member of its Alumni Association Board of Directors, as well as an officer and member of the Board of Trustees of the Caedmon School in New York City.

DAVID CASTLE

Managing Partner

Mr. Castle’s primary responsibilities are deal execution, post-acquisition oversight and...

Eric Korsten

Position: Senior Managing Director
Categories: sidebar, team

Mr. Korsten is a Senior Managing Director and Investment Committee member of Branford. He has been active in private equity and finance for over 25 years. Mr. Korsten is currently a board member of ABC Industries, Eastern Dental Management, Hoffman Engineering and Testek Solutions. Prior to re-joining Branford, he held senior roles in private equity. Before then, Mr. Korsten was a Senior Managing Director and Investment Committee member at Branford, where he worked for over a decade. While at Branford, he led numerous investments across a variety of industries and held board seats on a number of boards, including notable investments in Surface Preparation Technologies and Pulse Veterinary Technologies. Early in his career, Mr. Korsten was an investment banker focused on M&A, restructuring and capital markets at several investment banks, including Jefferies & Co.

Mr. Korsten graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a B.A. and holds an M.B.A. from New York University – Leonard N. Stern School of Business.

Eric Korsten

Senior Managing Director

Mr. Korsten is a Senior Managing Director and Investment Committee...

CEON FRANCIS

Position: Managing Director
Categories: sidebar, team

Mr. Francis is responsible for sourcing, evaluating, executing and overseeing new investments. He has been with Branford since 2018 and is currently a board member of Eastern Dental Management, Handi Quilter, Hoffman Engineering, and Lafayette Instruments. Prior to Branford, Mr. Francis began his career in management consulting before transitioning to Macy’s where he was a Director focused on Strategy & Marketing. Mr. Francis received his B.A. in Economics from Wesleyan University and earned an M.B.A. from ESSEC Business School in France. Additionally, he was recognized as one of 2020’s Rising Star Dealmakers by the Global M&A Network and was also selected as one of the winners of the M&A Advisor’s 11th Annual Emerging Leaders Awards.

CEON FRANCIS

Managing Director

Mr. Francis is responsible for sourcing, evaluating, executing and overseeing...

JAMES REDDINGTON

Position: Chief Financial Officer
Categories: sidebar, team

Mr. Reddington manages the financial, administrative and accounting operations of a global portfolio of companies. Prior to joining Branford in 2010, he was CFO of Synergy Workplaces, a provider of flexible workplaces. Prior to that, Mr. Reddington was CAO of NY Mortgage Trust, a mortgage REIT listed on the NYSE, where he oversaw all financial accounting, operational accounting and budgeting, SEC reporting and Sarbanes-Oxley compliance. Mr. Reddington received a B.S. in accounting from Fairleigh Dickinson University. He is a Member of the American Institute of CPAs and is a Certified Public Accountant.

JAMES REDDINGTON

Chief Financial Officer

Mr. Reddington manages the financial, administrative and accounting operations of...

Marilyn Yang

Position: Principal
Categories: sidebar, team

Ms. Yang is involved in the sourcing, acquisition and oversight of new and existing investments and is currently a board member of ABC Industries, GPT Industries, and Marine Floats. Prior to joining Branford in 2018, Ms. Yang worked as an investment banking analyst in the Global Industrials Group at Barclays, where she focused on mergers and acquisitions as well as equity and debt financing transactions. Ms. Yang graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania with a B.S. in Economics and concentrations in Finance, Marketing and Strategic Management.

Marilyn Yang

Principal

Ms. Yang is involved in the sourcing, acquisition and oversight...