Waud Capital Partners Announces Acquisition of Senior Helpers

CHICAGO—Waud Capital Partners (Waud Capital), a growth-oriented middle-market private equity firm, announced the acquisition of Senior Helpers, a provider of in-home care and wellness offerings for seniors. Waud Capital is acquiring Senior Helpers from Advocate Health, the third-largest nonprofit health system in the nation. 

The Maryland-based Senior Helpers operates through more than 380 franchised and corporate-owned locations in 44 states, Canada and Australia. These locations provide seniors homecare and wellness services, including meal planning, grocery shopping, medication reminders, transportation, companionship and assistance with personal hygiene. They also offer special programs for chronic neurological diseases, particularly Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases. The company’s services enhance seniors’ ability to remain in their homes and avoid or delay the need for care in inpatient facilities.

“We are very excited for our franchisee partners, teammates, caregivers and clients,” Senior Helpers CEO and Co-Founder Peter Ross said. “The need for high-quality, in-home senior care has never been greater. We see opportunities to enhance our suite of senior services as part of the next phase of the company’s growth.Waud Capital brings deep expertise in supporting and successfully growing health care companies, a set of similar core values, and a shared vision for the future. We look forward to partnering together to better position the company to expand its best-in-class care and wellness services for seniors.”

Steve Jakubcanin, an executive partner at Waud Capital with more than 20 years of health care operating experience in homecare and other post-acute sectors, will serve as Senior Helpers’ executive chairman of the Board of Directors. As a former clinician and experienced executive, he brings an understanding of multi-site operations and patient care, and has successfully scaled organizations through both organic and inorganic strategies. Jakubcanin most recently served as CEO of Cornerstone Healthcare Group and previously held senior leadership roles at AccentCare and Kindred Healthcare, two providers of homecare and post-acute services.

“Senior Helpers is one of the most respected and reputable brands in the homecare industry, and I share the company’s commitment to providing high-quality, compassionate care,” Jakubcanin said. “It is a privilege to work with Peter and the Senior Helpers management team. We plan to continue building on the company’s success and further enhance the services offered to our franchisee partners and client families.”

“We strongly believe in the value of services that enable seniors to thrive independently and affordably in the comfort of their own homes,” Kyle Lattner, principal at Waud Capital, said. “We are excited to partner with Steve, Peter and the Senior Helpers team to continue providing best-in-class client care and exceptional support to our franchisee partners while also capitalizing on significant opportunities to expand the company’s footprint and services.”

This platform marks Waud Capital’s seventh investment in the homecare and post-acute space, alongside current investments in Concierge Home Care (skilled home health and primary care), PromptCare (home infusion and complex respiratory services), and Ivy Rehab (physical therapy), and prior investments in CarePoint Partners (home infusion), Regency Hospital Company (long-term acute care hospitals), and DS Medical (home medical supplies).

“Our partnership with Senior Helpers is another key example of the Waud Capital strategy of matching experienced executive talent with industry-leading companies in sectors where we have deep conviction,” said Chris Graber, a partner at Waud Capital who leads the firm’s health care investment team. “We look forward to supporting the company in its next phase of growth.”

“Advocate Health remains committed to collaborating with innovative companies like Senior Helpers to advance health care transformation and enhance outcomes among our patients aging in place,” said Rasu Shrestha, Advocate Health’s chief innovation and commercialization officer.

Cain Brothers, a division of KeyBanc Capital Markets, served as financial advisor to Waud Capital. Livingstone acted as financial advisor to Advocate Health and Senior Helpers. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.